jBfiv-

NARRATIVE OF A RESIDENCE

AT THE COURT OF

MEER ALI MOORAD;

WITH

Hilb ipoiis in tijc ^^allcg of tlje |nbus. BY EDWARD ARCHER LANGLEY,

LATE CAPTAIN, MADBAS CAVALRY.

THE AUTHOR.

IN TWO YOLU]MES. YOL. n.

LONDON : HURST AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS,

SUCCESSORS TO HENRY COLBURN,

13, GE^EAT MAELBOKOUGH STEEET.

1860.

The right of Translation is reserved.

CONTENTS or VOL. 11.

CHAPTEE I.

Looms of Sindh — Silk-"Weavers — Goat's Hair — Eaneepoor and Gumbut — Summary from Eeport on Census of Sindh — The Kulloree — An Aquatic Battue — "Wild Fowl Shooting — Snakes — Captain Croker's Encounter with a Boa Constrictor — Accident to H. M. 17th Dragoons in the Mahratta War — Swordsman and Sow — Wounded Horse — Advantage of a little Medical Knowledge — Quinine a Panacea for all Diseases — Vaccination — The Crops of Sindh— Similarity of Climate to that of Egypt — Overflow of the Indus — Canals for Irrigation — In- crease of Population — Proportion of Sexes — Cattle — Wells — The Persian Wheel — Improvements imder Sir Bartle Erere — Construction of Bridges — Grand Trimk Eoad — Military Eoad — Principal Eoutes in Sindh . 1

CHAPTEE II.

Eevenue System — Assessment on Crops — Eorms of Col- lection— Land Eevenue in Government Territory — AYeights and Measures — Currency — Balance of Caste in Khp'poor Territory— Character of the People— The Be- loochees of Sindh— Want of Education— Indifference to the Pine Arts — Hindoo and Mahomedan AVomen— Civil

CONTENTS.

and Criminal Justice at Khyrpoor — Tortures — lustauce of Hote Singh's Barbarity — Police — Ordeal of Fire and Water — "Wife Murder — Sale of "Wives — Highway Eoh- bery — Pastoral Tribes — Camel Drivers of Sindh — Patri- archal Character of the Beloochees — Bards and Minstrels — Khyrpoor Prima Donna — Professional Dancers — Peers, Seynds, &c. — Supposed Jewish Descent of Beloochees — Meanis — Pulla Fishery ..... 35

CHAPTER III.

Hindoos in Sindh — Their Peculiar Customs — Indifference in Matters of Caste and EeUgion — Petty Traders — The Sindhi Language — Dialect of the Beloochees — KhjTpoor Ai'tificers — CheUas — Meena — Manufacture of Arms at Hyderabad — Sword of Timour — Division of Time — Sindhian Eras — The Tear — The Seasons — Months, Weeks, and Days — Minor Divisions — Indian Astronomical Year — Khyrpoor Water- Clock — The Ghurryal — Mode of mark- ing Time at Khyrpoor — Dejee Kot — Extraordinary Gun — Its Inscription — Ali Moorad's Policy — Mutiny of the Meer's Troops — Embargo on his Breakfast — The Hukeem Emaum Ood Deen Khan — Anecdote of a Beloochee Chief — Anecdote of the Eajah of AVunpurty — The Hu- keem in London ....... 75

CHAPTER lY.

The Yillage of Dejee— The Meer's family— Their Primitive Style of Living — The Meer's Bungalow at Dejee — His Occupation during the Day — Training Hawks — Sim- plicity of the Court — A Prince's Breakfast — Houses of the Ameers — The Smaller Houses — Yentilators — House- hold Utensils — Caussee — The Ali Surkars — The Post Office — A Yoracious Calf — A Fleet of Invalids — Stolen Watch — Excessive Heat — Birth of an Heir — Grand Eur tertainment 118

CONTE>'TS.

CHAPTER V.

Antelope Himting — Bad Government — Filling the Meer- wah — Hindoo Ladies Bathing — Night-shooting — Killing a Tiger with an Arrow — Marriage Procession— Bursting of the Knlloree — Euinous "Walls — Habits of Meer Ali Moorad — Hote Singh — Eeligion of the Sindhians — Shiahs and Soonies — Evening Prayei' — The Eamzan Festival — Pasting Unfashionable at Khyrpoor — Tiger Shot — Khood- bah — Buckreed Pestival 147

CHAPTER YI.

Mohurrum — Syed Jaffer Ali Shah — Murseeahs — Procession — Dool-Dool — Chanting of Women — Grallantries of Hindoo Ladies — Eloquence of Syed Mehr-i-Duri*ya Shah — IMourn- ing Garments — Mortifying the Plesh — Hyderabad Puthan Pight — Sindhian Superstitions — Magicians — Magic Mir- ror— The Meer IMoonshee — Science of Hazirat — "Wasps discover Pilferers — Evil Spmts around a Sick Bed — A "Wounded Prince — Amusements during convales- cence ........ 177

CHAPTER VII.

Meer Ali Moorad — British Breaches of Paith — Maharanees of Nagpore — Sindiah — Jhansi — Carnatic Stipendiaries — Prince Azeem Jah — King of Oudh — Sir Charles Na- pier's Prophetic AVarnings — Causes of the Insurrection — Mr Layard — Peeling of the People — Finance — "Waste- ful Expenditure — Salaries of Pondicherry Officials — Sir Charles Trevelyan — Mr Bright' s Speech on Indian Re- form— Improved Policy — Native Qualifications — Rath- borne's Report — Demeanour towards Natives — Our Go- vernment of Sindh — Beneficial Results — Departure from Khyrpoor — Adieu to Sindh .... 210

Appendix 267

,/

NARRATIVE OF A RESIDENCE

AT THE COURT OF

MEER ALI MOORAD.

CHAPTER I.

Looms of Sinclli — Silk-Weavers — Goat's Hair — Raneepoor and Gumbut — Summary from Report on Census of Sindh — Tlie Kul- loree — An Aquatic Battue— Wild Fowl Shooting — Snakes — Cap- tain Croker's Encounter with a Boa Constrictor — Accident to H. M. 17th Dragoons in the Mahratta War — Swordsman and Sow — Wounded Horse— Advantage of a little Medical Knowledge — Quinine a Panacea for all Diseases — Vaccination — The Crops of Sindh — Similarity of Climate to that of Egypt — Overflow of the Indus — Canals for Irrigation — Increase of Population — Propor- tion of Sexes — Cattle — Wells — The Persian Wheel — Improve- ments under Sir Bartle Erere — Construction of Bridges — Grand Trunk Road — Military Road — Principal Routes in Sindh. :

The looms of Sindh are employed in the manufacture of various kinds of coarse silk and cotton cloths, or of fabrics half silk and half cotton, for which latter production Sindh was

VOL. II. 1

2 SILK-WEAVING IN SINDH.

long celebrated, but these are now completely eclipsed by the manufactures of Mooltan and Bhawulpoor. Every village has its weavers, by whom the country is supplied with that coarse cotton cloth in universal use throughout Sindh. The weaving is conducted in this wise: — the cotton, having been purchased in the raw state, is made over to the cleaners ; the instrument for beating it is the common triangular one, suspended from the roof; the string being of gut, the cotton is not much injured by this process, which is that of the Pinjaras, or cotton cleaners of India. After being thus cleaned, the cotton is spun by the women of the estab- lishment. The thread is then drawn out upon rows of small sticks, and afterwards soaked in water and flour. When taken out, it is again stretched upon sticks and exposed to the air. In this state it is rubbed with a large brush of tamarisk, and is then ready for the weaver. The weaving is the same as that adopted in Ceylon, the machine being suspended from the roof, and a hollow made below for the feet of the weaver, by which the upper and lower skeins of thread are raised and depressed as requisite. The cloth is generally made from a

SILK-WEAVERS. O

foot to eighteen inches in breadth, and thirty-six feet in length. Two of these pieces can be made in three days. The average price of cotton wool is about three seers per rupee, and from this three and a half pieces of cloth can be manufactm-ed. The cloth is sold at an average price of fourteen annas ; so that, as the whole process, except cleaning the wool, is carried out by the weaver and his family, his profits may be easily calculated. The best cloth is made from English thread, which is considered far superior in appearance and durability to that spun in Sindh.

There are also silk-weavers in some parts of Sindh, the silk being imported from Kandahar, and occasionally dyed in Sindh. This province was formerly celebrated for its Loongees of silk and gold, but the only kind still manufactured is a checked cotton one with silk borders. Most natives of respectability wear cummer- bunds of silk of showy colours, and the manufac- ture of the national head-dress is an important branch of trade.

Goat's hair is woven into coarse cloth, and the most durable ropes are spun from the same material. Camel's hair is also applied to the

4 RANEEPOOR AND GUMBUT.

like purpose. The former is called in Sindhi Moong 2var, i. e. Bar-Kush, the ''load fastener," and is much used in Kajilas, or caravans, for that purpose, from beyond the frontier.

Raneepoor and Grumbut are the chief manu- facturing towns in the Khyrpoor territory ; at the latter place I am told the workmen are very expert in copying any patterns of chintz furnish- ed to them, and I know that their colours are extremely durable. The Sahokars of Gumbut are very wealthy, and some of them carry on an extensive trade with Bombay, Shikarpoor, &c.

I here subjoin a brief summary from a volu- minous Report on the Census of Sindh by the Deputy Collector of Customs : —

General Remarks.

" The subdivision of the land is greatest in the Upper Sindh Western Frontier, and least in the Thurr and Parkur districts, the proportion of cultivation to population being 1.3 beegas in the former, to 4.3 beegas in the latter ; this may be partly accounted for by the fact that Jaco- babad is a military station.

"In the Kurrachee Collectorate the proportion is 3.5 beegas to each head of its population,

SUMMAEY OF CENSUS OF SINDH. 5

whilst in the Hydrabad and Shikarpoor Collect- orates it is only 1.5 and 1.7 respectively. The general average is two beegas or one acre, which is about the general average of the Punjaub.

'' The highest rate of land assessment is in the Shikarpoor Collectorate, where it averages rs. 1- 6-0 per beega, or rs. 2-10-7 per English acre ; the lowest in the Thurr and Parkur, where it averages only one anna and nine pies per beega.

"In Hydrabad the average is rs. 1-1-8 per beega, or rs. 2-2-2 per acre, whilst in the Kurra- chee Collectorate it is nine annas and five pies per beega, or rs. 1-2-3 per acre.

' ' The general average rate for the Province is 14 annas and nine pies per beega, or rs. 1-12-7 per acre ; or per head of the entire population, taking the total revenue of the Province in 1854-55, viz. rs. 3,273,749, rs. 1-15J annas.

" These varieties of assessment of com'se arise from the different productive capabilities of the soil, facilities of irrigation, and proximity to markets, affecting the price of produce.

" Were the Indus to cease to flow, Sindh would become a barren waste, as it now is where fer- tilising influence of its waters is unfelt, either directly by its periodical overflow, or through

6 LAND UNDER CULTIVATION.

the medium of the 6906 miles of water-com^ses, independent of minor-channels, which it sup- plies, cut in all directions, on either side of its course, like the veins and capillaries from a great artery ; these, with the aid of 8260 pucka wells — it is not stated how many cutcha ones — and 793 tanks, form the estimated irrigational resources of the Province, which seldom experi- ences the genial influence of a shower.

" The total quantity of land under cultivation taken from the return of resources of the Province prepared by the Collectors is 33,44,458 beegas.

" The total quantity of land under cultivation is estimated at 19,78,026 beegas, the produc- tion at 69,04,712 maunds, and the value at rupees 76,20,805.

" The value of produce diminishes as the dis- tance from the sea face increases. In the Kur- rachee Collectorate the average price of grain is rs. 1-9 a maund. In the Hydrabad Collectorate, rs. 1-1-6, and in the Shikarpoor Collectorate 15 annas and six pies ; whilst the rate of Assess- ment in these Collectorates is in the increase, viz. rs. 1-0-6 per beega at Shikarpoor, rs. 1-1-8 at Hydrabad, and nine annas and five pies at Kurrachee.

PRICE OF GRAIN. 7

^' The proportion of produce to cultivation is for :

mds. seers.

Kurracliee 2 18

Hydrabad 3 15

Sliikarpoor 4 4

Jacobabad 1 20

^ ' So that it would appear that nearly twice the quantity of land is required to cultivate a maund of produce in the Kurrachee than in the Sliikarpoor Collectorate.

"If as a general rule it holds good that the price of grain diminishes as the distance from the sea-coast increases, then the jorice of grain in the Punjaub must be still lower than it is at Sliikarpoor ; hence probably, though the princi- ple would not seem to hold good in Sindh, the lower rate of land assessment in the Punjaub as compared with Sindh, which averages rupees 1-12-7 per acre, whilst for the Punjaub it is only rupees 1-5-4 per acre.

" In a letter written in April last by Mr Tem- ple, Secretary to the Chief Commissioner in the Punjaub, it is stated on the authority of the Friend of India J that wheat was then selling in

8 CORN TRADE OF THE PUNJAUB.

the Punjaub at two maunds of 80 lbs. eacb per rupee, which is less than one-third the price quoted for the like produce in Kurrachee.

" But the Punjaub, unlike Sindh, has no re- munerative outlet for her surplus produce. We are authoritatively informed (see Punjaub Re- port, page 95) that in a season of superabund- ance there is not a sufficient market to secure its sale at remunerative prices. No countries surround the Punjaub to which any great quan- tity of grain could be exported. To the west the disturbed state of Afghanistan, and the diffi- culties and cost of transit, must prevent the ex- portation of food. To the south are Sindh and Bhawulpore, the former producing more than it can consume, the latter a poor and thinly peo- pled tract. To the east is the Jullundar Doab, densely peopled, but so fruitful in its own soil as fully to sujDport the inhabitants. To the north are the Hills, whose inhabitants have not the means of purchasing our surj)lus produce.

" Land in Sindh is perhaps more fertile than the soil of the Punjaub. The Indus, which waters it, is capable of conveying its produce, at all seasons, to the sea face, whence it can be ex- ported to various remunerative markets. Not

ADVANTAGEOUS POSITION OF SINDH. 9

SO the Punjaub, whose rivers are uncertain and often unnavigable, and which has no surround- ing markets to purchase the surplus fruit of its industry. The distance from the sea face^ too, is great, and the means of reaching it for the most part tedious and uncertain.

" In every respect, then, Sindh has the ad- vantage of the Punjaub, in position, soil, facility of transit leading to remunerative markets — everything in fact which tends to give wealth to nations. Yet Sindh, if we include her military, is not a self-supporting country, but annually draws upon the general revenue of the state.

" Five millions sterling is not perhaps an ex- cessive estimate of what has been spent in the Province since our occupation of it, besides its own revenues circulating through the Province and enriching the population.

" Our policy in Sindh has been reduction of taxation, which has been effected to a large ex- tent, from what it stood under the sovereignty of the Ameers.

" All obnoxious taxes on commerce have been happily abolished."

Here, however, I must return to my royal

10 MEER ALI MOOEAD AT NAUCHEE.

master, whom I have lost sight of through some twenty pages or so. His Highness was de- lighted with the Commissioner's cordiality at their meeting, and on the following day re- tm-ned the visit of that high functionary at Sukkur ; immediately after which he took boat and dropped down the river again to Nauchee, where we remained several days, hog and parah shooting on the island opposite, which is one of the Meer's pet preserves. His Highness then moved his camp in a southerly direction ; and I, requesting leave of absence, returned to Khyrpoor to prepare letters, both public and private, for the next overland mail. In this, as in most other matters, I found the Meer very considerate and obliging. The old bungalow of Meer Sohrab really too appeared quite com- fortable, after roughing it in His Highness' camp, and I quietly settled myself in my quar- ters, awaiting the Meer's advent, which took place a few days subsequently.

On the day after his arrival preparations were made for wild fowl shooting, and I assisted at a battue such as I never saw before. About a mile to the east of Khyrpoor is a lake, called the Kul- loree, said to be about fifteen miles in circum-

AQUATIC BATTUE. 11

ference. This the Meer has formed by means of a canal, which being dammed up has over- flowed a large tract of his finest land, in order to obtain one or two days' wild fowl shooting. The said lake too has repeatedly threatened his capital with destruction by the bursting of its bund. The Kulloree, however, is nowhere deep, except in certain places close to the bund ; and, being intersected with bushes and sur- rounded with reeds, affords shelter to water fowl of every sort in myriads, ducks and teal of various kinds ; pelicans and cranes, coots, water-hens, and every species of aquatic bird from the dabchick upwards. As these bu*ds had not heard the sound of a gun for upwards of two years, consequent on the Meer's absence in England, they were less wary at first than wild fowl usually are, and His Highness' me- thod of shooting them would, I think, rather astonish a professional wild fowl shooter from Hampshire or the fens. His Highness' break- fast tent having been pitched near the embank- ment east of the city, I rode out there and found it surrounded by the usual crowd of Mooktyar Kars, Moonshees, Minstrels, Mendi- cants, and the like ; and having submitted some

12 WILD FOWL SHOOTING.

papers for His Hig]iness' approval, I was about to return home, when I was invited by the Meer to remain as a spectator of the wild fowl shoot- ing. His Highness and his yomigest son took the field together in a mauffa^ a sort of open palankeen, the pattern of which must have fur- nislied the idea of that litter, or call, it what you will, wherein the Inca makes his appearance in Pizarro, as represented at the Princess' The- atre. His Highness and Meer Khan Mahomed, having been thus carried through the swamp, seated themselves on a raft composed of a dozen large pots lashed to a frame covered with reeds, very suitable for such sport, which was pushed throuoii the water towards the ducks and other wild fowl ; and these were at first so little alarmed that they allowed the raft to approach within forty yards ere they took wing. Great was the destruction by the first few shots, till the continued firing caused them to become more wary; but even then the bii'ds wheeled round and round within easy shot of the princes, till at length the ducks and larger fowl appeared each time to increase the length of their flights, and after some hundred shots had been fired they abandoned the lake for some more secure

SPORT WITH WOUNDED BIRDS. 13

place of refuge. Still, however, the firing was kept up on coots, divers, and water-hens, which, being hardly allowed a moment's pause to rest their weary wings on the bosom of the water, were forced to fly round and round, thus afford- ing sport after the ducks and teal had all sought shelter at a distance. "VVlien the Meer and his sons were tired of slaughter, much'amusement was caused by their hiped retrievers in endea- vours to catch wounded birds, many of which were swimming about with broken wings, and afforded good sport, as their pursuers, in wading after them, occasionally popped heels over head into deep holes, to the manifest entertainment of the Meer and his sons ; but the Sindlii-s are a good-humoured race, and though the water was cold they took their duckings in very good part. Thus ended our grand water fowl shikar.

During the months preceding the inundation the Kulloree is nearly dry; indeed, it is a great pity that the water is not altogether excluded from it, as some thousand acres of the most pro- ductive land in the Khyrpoor territory are at present sacrificed for a few days' sport. About this time the news was received of a tiger having crossed from the Larkhana side and

14 SNAKES IN SINDH.

been seen in the direction of the Buttee Ferry, about twenty miles from Khyrpoor. So the Meer and his household were all excitement, as tigers are very scarce game in Sindh; in fact, when seen in the Khja-poor country, they are merely stray animals which have crossed from tlie right bank of the river. Much to the disappointment of the Meer, the tiger crossed back to the west- em side without His Highness having had an opportunity of trying his shell gun at him.

In no part of India Proper are there, I be- lieve, so many venomous snakes as in Sindh ; indeed, in the former it is rare to hear of an accident, whereas the Sindh official returns show tliat in 1855 above three hundred persons died from snake bites, and I know that during the time I was at Khyrpoor several persons lost their lives from the same cause. Three, I re- member, died on the same evening, after a heavy shower, the only one I saw in Upper Sindh, which I suppose set all creeping things in motion, and the crumbling walls of the old houses of the Ameers are filled with snakes, that find therein a secure refuge from birds of prey, which would otherwise decrease their numbers. Two or three very large snakes were

SHAKES IN SINDH. 15

killed in our own court-yard, and the tracks of others were constantly visible in the dust every morning, showing how numerous they must be.

None of the snakes in Sindh are, however, to be compared with the rock snakes of India, which are occasionally met with of enormous size ; indeed, a snake of this description was killed some years ago in the Wynaud Jungle by Captain Croker, late of H. M. 84th regiment, which measured nearly thirty feet in length and three in circumference. The head and skin of this unusually large specimen of the Anaconda tribe were sent to the Hon. Arthur Cole, then Resident at Mysore, where they were preserved as curiosities. Captain Croker, who was a capital shot and an untiring sportsman, passed as much time as he could in the jungles in the pursuit of game, and being quite indif- ferent to personal comfort, he only required shelter at night, which he obtained from the villagers, with milk and rice in abundance for himself and his attendant Shikaree, and he was quite content with this simple fare. Captain Croker was greatly liked by the natives, several of whose languages he spoke sufficiently to be

16 SNAKES IN SINDH.

understood by them, and that was enough for his purpose.

Wlien on one of his sporting excursions in Wynaud, he was told of an enormous Boa, or Anaconda, which had been occasionally seen, and was held in great terror by the natives, but could obtain no certain intelligence of its whereabouts. Being, however, one day in pursuit of game, accompanied by a Shikaree, and a very powerful and high-couraged dog, the latter made a rush forward, and suddenly he heard a whimper and choking noise. Cap- tain Croker at once thought that his dog was in the clutches of a Cheetah, and pushed on to his assistance through the thick jungle, wherein he got sight of a large object, in colour black and orange, which he at first thought was a tiger, but presently saw that it was a huge Boa con- strictor coiled up. As he approached, the mon- ster began to uncoil itself; presently its head became revealed, and two diamond-like eyes glared as the animal glided towards him. Cap- tain Croker was a man of great nerve, and he fired both barrels at the Boa's head — both balls took efiect ; yet, though checked for an instant, the snake came on more fiercely than before,

ENCOUNTER WITH A BOA CONSTRICTOR. 17

and the Shikaree having bolted with the Cap- tain's rifle, he also was compelled to run, and had just time to climb up into a tree when his pursuer arrived at its foot. Captain Croker lost no time in reloading, but to his dismay found that the Shikaree had carried off all his balls ; luckily, however, he had plenty of shot, and having reloaded, saw that one of the Boa's eyes was knocked out ; nevertheless the animal ap- peared quite aware of his proximity, having seemingly followed him by the scent. By this time the Boa was twining itself round the bole of the tree in order to ascend it, when Captain C. fired one barrel into its remaining eye, at a distance of only about ten feet ; the creature at once fell back, but again and again renewed its efforts to reach him, though without effect, and Captain Croker continued to fire at it till life appeared to be extinct ; though for a consider- able time it continued to writhe and lash the bushes with its tail, the vast muscular power of which seemed quite astonishing. At length. Captain Croker's firing having ceased, the Shikaree returned, accompanied by a number of villagers, who were both delighted and aston- ished at beholding the dead Boa, in whose

VOL. II. 2

18 ACCIDENT TO A FALCONER.

crushing folds many of their cattle had perished. They now placed the dead snake on a cart and carried it in triumph to their village, where it was skinned and the carcass hung upon a tree, its fat being previously removed for medicinal purposes, the natives believing it to be a sove- reign remedy for impotence and other com- plaints incidental to them. The unfortunate dog was found completely crushed, and near it a dead deer in the same state, on the spot where Captain Croker had discovered the monster coiled.

One morning a falconer fell with his pony into a small well ; fortunately the depth was not great, and the man was extricated with little injury by means of turbans knotted together, by which he was hauled up ; but whether the steed was ever got out or not I cannot say. I wonder. Indeed, that such accidents do not more frequently occur in India, where pot-wells are in all directions to be met with. I once, when hunting in the Nagporc country, had a narrow escape. We were running a jackal through some melon gardens, when I came full speed on one of these wells, so close before my horse that it was ImjDossible to avoid it ; so I crammed him at it, and he carried me over in gallant style,

ACCIDENT TO THE ITtH DRAGOONS. 19

but I afterwards saw it would have been an awkward place to have got into. A terrible ac- cident occurred during the Mahratta and Pin- darrie campaign of 1817-18, by which several men of H. M. 17th Dragoons lost their lives. A squadron or more of the regiment was with the advanced guard, and with it a couple of Gal- loper Guns. Marching in the dark on the out- skirts of a village, the troops passed close to a well without any parapet around it ; the horses and limber cleared the well ; but unhappily one of the gun-wheels slipped in, down went the gun, its weight dragging the limber and horses after it. A staff-officer who was present de- scribed the scene as most heart-rending; the night was pitch-dark, and nothing could be dis- cerned till a light was procured from the vil- lage. For a few moments agonizing screams of both men and horses rent the air; but the former soon ceased, though the struggling of the horses continued, No human aid could avail, and three dreadful hours crept away ; but at length morning dawned upon that scene of horror. Five fine soldiers were lost to the regiment ; those upon the limber, if not killed by the fall, must have been crushed to death at

20 HOG HUNTING.

once by the horses falling upon them ; and the others, most probably, died from the injuries sustained in the fall, or from suffocation.

In one of our hunting excursions a young boar about a year old was caught by the dogs and secured alive, being tied neck and heels by the Shikarees, who brought him before the Meer. His Highness called for the dogs, fierce Khorassan boar-hounds, which were brought up ; and the captive being taken about fifty yards to the front, tlie cords were cut, piggy remaining perfectly quiet till he found himself free, when, instead of running away, he made a rush at the Shikaree, who in his flight was so closely pursued that his nether garment was ripped up and an ugly scratch inflicted by the animal's tusk on his seat of honour, but the dogs being luckily slipped in time prevented more serious injury. Some days after this we had a hog hunt of another kind, in which there certainly is considerable danger. It took place in a walled garden of great extent, the wall of which being broken down in some places afford- ed ingress to numerous hogs, who resorted there to feed on the jowaree, which also afforded them good cover. These apertures having been

THE COURT JESTER. 21

closed on the morning of the hunt, which took place in the afternoon, a raised building was constructed for the accommodation of the Meer and some of his principal officers, in which they placed themselves. Inferiors seated themselves on the wall, or on trees, anywhere, in short, out of reach of the animals. One of Jacob's horse- men was present, and the I^Ieer asked him if he would encounter a hog with his sword, but the trooper declined the honour, for which the Meer called him a coward, though if all present were cowards who would have done the same, I apprehend that His Highness and most of those around him would have come within the category. A scampy dissipated retainer of the Meer's, who was generally under the influence of stimu-lants, and was looked on as a sort of court jester, having thoroughly primed himself with hJmng, then came forward declaring that he was a match for any boar in the world ; and having been lauded to the skies by all present as a very ''Roostam," the Persian Hercules, placed himself on a rising ground just in front of the Meer's stand, and baring his arm to the shoulder, twisted his moustache and flourished his sword to the admiration of his friends, who

22 SWORDSMAN AND SOW.

were prepared to witness wondrous deeds of valour.:^ A few horsemen led by one of the Meer's cousins then began to beat the cover, with numerous boar hounds, and the hogs rushed about in all directions. At last, one of them, a large sow, getting sight of the champion, rushed at him with a furious grunt ; and the poor felloAV, whether appalled at sight of the beast, or the effects of the stimulant at that mo- ment passing away, was slow in his move- ments, and before the sword could descend her charge was made, and the boastful bragga- docio sent flying heels in the air, whilst liis assailant escaped unscathed. At first it was thought that the fellow was killed, but some water being thrown on his face and chest he soon recovered his senses, and we found that he had sustained no harm save fright, though, had his assailant been a boar instead of a sow, the result would have been very serious, if not fatal, as the stroke of a boar's tusk inflicts a fearful wound. I saw an instance of this shortly after, when a wounded boar charged a Sowar, and though he managed partly to avoid the shock of the charge, the boar in passing cut the horse across the side of the knee, inflicting

WOUNDED HORSE. 23

SO terrible a wound that I never expected the horse to recover, as the knee swelled to three times its natural size. I recommended hot bran poulticing for several days, and repeated fomentations of murgosa and other leaves, much used for that purpose in cavalry regiments, whereby the inflammation was allayed ; then leeches, a simple dressing, and cold aj^plications completed the cure, and the horse in course of a month was fit for duty, to the great enhance- ment of my reputation as a skilful veterinarian. Indeed, if I could have responded as successfully to those who applied to me for medicines to re- pair exhausted nature and renovate the powers impaired by early debauch, I might have accu- mulated a handsome sum during my stay at the court of Meer Ali Moorad, for a2:)2Dlications, in the belief that I was a medical man, were of daily occurrence. I found it, too, somewhat difficult to persuade such applicants that I could be of no service to them, as, having cured two or three persons of fever which had resisted all remedies previous to my administration of quinine, and that proving successful, it was looked on as a panacea for all diseases. More or less prejudice has been found to prevail in Sindli

24 VACCINATION.

against the introduction of vaccination. The climate during the hot months is supposed to be unfavourable to the development of those bene- fits which in a cooler climate are happily found to result from its employment. On the whole, however, notwithstanding the more than average prevalence of small pox, vaccination is making some progress in the province, and Meer Ali Moorad has encom-aged its introduction in his own family.

The crops in Sindh are two in number, viz. 1st, the Rubbee or vernal crop, sown in the autumnal months, and brought forward by the heavy dews and cool nights of winter, and reaped in the spring. 2nd, the Khurreef or autumnal crops, sown in the siunmer, brought forward by the flooding of the river, and cut after the subsiding of the inundation. The following is a list of the articles cultivated : —

kinds.

Grain 10

Pulse 7

Oil seeds 6

Vegetables 10

Gourds 11

Dye plants 6

CLIMATE OF SINDH AND EGYPT. 25

kinds.

Cordage and Clothing 8

Tobacco and Sugar 2

Intoxicating plants 3

Medicines 4

Condiments 6

Fruits 21

94 There is a striking similarity in many respects between the climate of Sindli and that of Egypt. The common characters are, great summer heat, untempered by rain ; great winter cold ; a dry soil ; and similar geological formations. These characters, says Dr Stock, in his able Report, determine the wild vegetation, which is also similar. The indications for culture are tliere- fore the same. Both Central and Upper Sindh are almost out of the range of the Monsoon, but the annual overflow of the Indus makes up to a certain extent, as does the overflow of the Nile, for the deficiency of rain above noticed. The waters of the Indus, like those of the Nile, are remarkably charged with fertilizing matter, rendering all lands productive when brought within their influence, either naturally or by the canals which intersect the country in all

26 INCREASE OF POPULATION.

directions. The total length of canals for irri- gation in Sindh is estimated at nearly 7000 miles, of which a fair proportion is in the Khyr- poor territory. The number of pukka wells in Sindh is said to be 6200, besides nearly 800 tanks. By the Census of 1856, the population of Sindh, including the present territory of Khyrj^oor, which has a population of 108,135 souls, is stated to be 1,776,367. This shows that the population of the province has largely increased since it came under British rule. For instance, Kurrachee, at the time of our occupa- tion, numbered scarcely 10,000 inhabitants ; it now has a population of nearly 57,000, including the camp ; and Jacobabad, which as " Khan- ghur " had not above half a dozen houses, con- tains now a thriving population of above 17,000 2:)ersons. The proportion of females to males is only 79 per cent, of all ages and religions ; this great disproportion between the sexes proves, to my thinking, that female infanticide is still extensively practised throughout the province of Sindh, and such, I was assured by well informed persons, is the fact. It is to the credit of Meer Ali Moorad's government that the propor- tion of females to males is larger in His High-

PROPORTION OF SEXES. 27

ness' territory than in any other part of Sindh, as showing that the practice is less prevalent there than in the districts of the province under British rule. Yet the census proves that longe- vity is in favour of the female sex, as of sexa- genarians there are only 100 males to 122 females. The proportion of castes in the popu- lation is as 100 Mahomedans to 27 Hindoos only. In the Hyderabad Collectorate the pro- portion of Hindoos is scarcely so large even, the Sindhees being estimated at three-fifths, Be- loochees one-fifth, and Hindoos one-fifth of the whole. Agriculture forms the chief occupation of the Mahomedans, of whom about 46 per cent, are employed in it — only one per cent being en- gaged in trade, and two per cent, in Government employ. The Marine class is almost entirely Mahomedan. On the other hand, the Hindoos are principally engaged in trade, nearly one- half, or 47 per cent., being so employed ; 15 per cent, in agriculture, 8 per cent, as mechanics, 1 1 per cent, as day-labourers, and 5 J per cent, in Government employ.

Other religions, including Christians, Jews, &c., are chiefly employed as Government ser- vants, day-labourers, &c.

28 CATTLE.

The average quantity of land to each cultiva- tor is about five acres. The quantity of land under cultivation in the year of the census was 33,44,458 Beegas, giving a proportion of two Beegas, or one acre, to each head of the popula- tion. There are 223 towns and 6170 villages in the province of Sindh, exclusive of His High- ness Meer Ali Moorad's territory.

The number of beasts of burden in the pro- vince is estimated at 585,916, viz. camels, horses, mules and asses, liullocks and buffaloes, which gives one animal to every 28 of the poj^ulation. Cows and milcli buffaloes are estimated at 8,44,938 head, and sheep and goats 13,76,933, giving one of the former to each, and five of the latter to ever}^ four of the population. Ele- phants, as I have before observed, are seldom seen in Sindh, as the climate does not agree with them. Carts too are but little used, except in the large towns and in Upper Sindh, as the roads of Lower Sindh generally are unsuitable to them.

Each well requires four pairs of bullocks for purposes of cultivation, the average price of each pair being from 30 to 40 rupees. In LoAver Sindh a camel is generally employed at this work instead of a pair of bullocks. Irriga-

PERSIAN WHEEL. 29

tion in Sindli from the river is either by open- ing drains leading to low lands or by the use of the Persian wheel. These wheels are usually jDlaced in cuts made from the river, where the land for cultivation is at hand ; but where such lands are at a distance, large canals lead to them from the river. It must be evident that in such a country as SIndh, dependent as it is entii^ely on artificial means of iiTigation, any neglect of the canals must be productive of ruin to the cultivation ; and, indeed, it is a well-known fact that vast tracts of fertile land have been re- duced to wastes, consequent on the want of water, owing to the neglected state of the canals. But since the country has been under British rule much has been done to improve the irrigation of the province. New canals have been cut, and others are projected, some of them at a very heavy cost, but promising to produce an enormous return of revenue when brought to completion.

Much too has been done in the construction of bridges within the last few years, for in 1856 the superintending engineer set to work in earnest and furthered the progress of the Grand Trunk Road, leading from Kurrachee

30 • GRAND TRUNK ROAD.

up the right bank of the Indus to the northern frontier, by improving and bridging the road from Kurrachee to Tatta ; also by surveys for improving the line of road from Tatta to Eoo- kun in the Larkhana district ; by the partial completion of a road along the Lukkee Pass between Upper and Lower Sindh; by plans and estimates for bridging the Aral river ; by permanently bridging the road between Sukkur and Shikarpoor, which was projected, be it re- membered, by Sir Charles Napier; and by a project for metalling the last-mentioned main line of communication. Besides these, other great works were projected, and only required time for their completion.

At the date of Sir Bartle Frere's assumption of office there were in Sindh but very few miles of road, and no permanent bridges save in the immediate vicinity of the military camps. There are now 624 miles of road permanently bridged, and 8591 miles unbridged. Among the bridges some have arches of considerable span ; for example, those over the Gharr Canal and the Western Narra, both erected under the supervision of the deputy collector, and con- sisting, the former of three arches of thirty feet

MILITARY ROAD. 31

span each, and the latter of four arches of thirty- eight feet each.

Among the bridges in the frontier districts are six over the Begaree Canal, each of forty feet span, and the bund on the road between Shikarpoor and Jacobabad, where have been constructed numerous elliptical arches of twenty- four feet span, executed by the native artificers of the district.

Besides these works of high importance in the British territory, I must mention the excel- lent military road extending along the left bank of the Indus, through Meer All Moorad's terri- tory. This road was marched by several bodies of troo^^s whilst I was at Khyrpoor, and amongst others by the Hon. Major Fraser's Liglit Field Battery of Artillery ; on which occasion I re- ceived a letter from the commanding officer ex- j)ressing his perfect satisfaction at the attention paid by the Meer's Kardars to the wants of his people, by which the march of his battery had been greatly facilitated ; that he had every- where found the Meer's officers most obli<j:iDn: in furnisliing supplies, which wore cheap and plentiful ; that the road was excellent, and the nullahs all bridged, so that his guns and tlieir

32 CONSTRUCTION OF BRIDGES.

attendant waggons met with no interruption. Amongst the bridges on this route are several of large span over the Meerwa canal ; these were all constructed at the expense of His Highness Meer Ali Moorad, who has on all occasions evinced an anxious desire to perform whatever might be requested of him by the officers of Government. With a view to accom- modate European travellers through his coun- try, the Meer, at my suggestion, also proposed building bungalows at the four halting places where they are required, viz. Lookman ka Tanda, Futteepoor, Eaneepoor, and Hingoorga, as soon as his finances would admit of the out- lay, by the fulfilment of those expectations which had induced His Highness to retm-n to India.

The principal routes in Sindh are from Kur- rachee to Sehwan, the hill route, distant 147 miles. Dhurmsallas, which afford shelter to the traveller, with water and supplies, are to be found at ten of the halting places. From Kur- rachee to Kotree, 98 miles, If furlongs. No shelter after passing Dumaj, and supplies scanty. Sehwan to Larkhana, 124 miles, 4 J furlongs. Good shelter and abundant supplies, also a

DISTANCES. 33

medical dispensary at Meliur. Larkhana to Jacobabad, 53 miles, 4 furlongs; little shelter and scanty supplies. Larkliana to Sliikarpoor, 39 miles, 6^ furlongs ; good shelter and supplies. Larkhana to Sukkur, 48 miles, 3f furlongs; shelter and supplies. Suklau* to Jacobabad, 48 miles; water and supplies. From KmTachee to Hyderabad, 114 miles, 5^ fui'longs ; shelter and abundant supplies. Hyderabad to Roree, 199 miles, 2J- furlongs ; generally good shelter and supplies plentiful. From Roree to Mool- tan, 307 miles, 7 furlongs ; shelter scanty, ditto supplies. Kurrachee to Deesa, 372 miles, one furlong; shelter scanty, supplies sufficient. Mandavie to Deesa, 229 miles, G fm-longs ; supplies sufficient, no shelter. Kurrachee to Bhooj, via Luckput, 229 miles, 2 J furlongs; no shelter or supplies at tAvelve halting places. From Hydei^abad to Bhooj, 194 miles, oj fur- longs; no shelter or supplies at nine halting places.

Hospitals and charitable dispensaries have been established at all the principal stations of collectors and their deputies, under charge of medical officers. In many places the people were from the first very desirous of these

VOL. II. 3

34- HOSPITALS.

establishments, whilst in other localities vague prejudices were entertained ; these have, how- ever, gradually disappeared, and the Sindhees in general now seem tidly alive to the ad- vantages of European medical treatment, and glad to avail themselves of the means that Government have humanely placed at their disposal.

CHAPTER II.

Revemie System — Assessment on Crops — Forms of Collection — Land Revenue in Government Territory — "Weights and Pleasures — Currency — Balance of Caste in Khyrpoor Territory — Character of the People — The Beloochees of Suidh — Want of Education — Indifference to the Fine Arts — Hindoo and Mahomedan "Women — Civil and Criminal Justice at Khyrpoor — Tortures — Instance of Hote Singh's Barbarity — Police — Ordeal of Fire and "\Yater — Wife Murder — Sale of Wives — Highway Robbery — Pastoral Tribes — Camel Drivers of Siudh — Patriarchal Character of the Beloochees — Bards and Minstrels — Khyrpoor Prima Donna — Professional Dancers — Peers, Seyuds, &c. — Supposed Jewish Descent of Be- loochees— Mcanis — Pulla Fishery.

The revenue system which obtains in Khyr-^ poor is that which formerly prevailed through- out Sinclli, under the designation of Buttai, being a division of the gross produce of the land. This system is, I know, acceptable to the cultivators themselves, though the British officials are mostly very hostile thereto ; not all so, however, as Major Stewart, collector of Shikarpoor, an officer of first-rate experience in revenue matters, would seem to be an excep-

36 REVENUE SYSTEM.

tioiij for in Lis revenue report No. 35, dated 24tli January, 1854, he observes : —

3. '' Vested with such authority, the Kardars under the Meer's rule succeeded in developing the resources of their districts, and not only levied greatly higher rates than we now do, but realized larger revenues, without, as far as we ascertain, any undue pressure on the culti- vator."

I believe this to be perfectly correct, having conversed on the subject with many cultivators in the Government districts, and they one and all declared that they preferred the Buttai system to that of cash payments, as established by the Commissioner, as it bears much less se- verely on the cultivator, albeit the cash j^ay- ment may be of less amount than the value of the grain contributed under the Buttai system.

The Meer's Kardars receive his share of the produce. This varies from one-fourth to one- fifth of the gross produce, according to the quality of the land. The Morkathadars, or Con- tractors, receive their own. These middle men are supposed to j^l^^i^cler the poor cultivators most cruelly, and to bring ruin ujoon many.

The assessment on the following crops is

ASSESSMENT OF CROPS. 37

generally by cash j)ayinent at the following rates : —

Cotton at from 1 r. 8 aiis. to 2 r. 9 aus. per Beega. Sugar Cane at do. 4 „ to G „ 9 „ „ „

Tobacco at do. 1 „ to 4 „ 4 „ „ „

The following are general rules in regard to revenue forms of collection : —

Indigo is never cash assessed, always But- taied.

Grain is never cash assessed.

Sugar Cane is always a cash assessed rent crop.

Cotton is generally a cash paying crop ; it is sometimes, but seldom, Buttaied.

Vegetables, fruits, and herbs are generally under cash assessment.

There is also another form of collection called ^'Kasgee," which is the fixing or determining, from the appearance of the crop while standing, what quantity of grain the cultivator will be able to pay to Government on every beega of cultivation. This duty is intrusted to men of known and acknowledged respectability. Their duties are onerous and responsible, and they are generally well paid. '' Kasgee " on well lands is levied from the cultivator by a fixed rate

38 LAND REVENUE.

according to the puttali, or lease, wliicli he holds from Government. Sir Charles Kapier sanctioned loans to cultivators for seed grain. This is a most important measure, if judiciously carried out, to save them from the extortions of the village Bunyah, Even the Ameers sanc- tioned the issue of seed from their own stores, to be repaid by an equal quantity at harvest- time, when the cultivator or zemindar has re- course to the Bunyah for tuccavee advances; such are made in cash or grain. If the former, the interest is generally at the rate of 3^ or 4 per cent, monthly; if the latter, a kharwar and a half is repaid for every kharwar ad- vanced on the produce. These Bunyahs are the vermin who destroy the cultivators through- out India. In the Government territory the bulk of land revenue is assessed and realized at rates not exceeding one-third of the gross produce. This, however, is far too high for the people to live in any degree of comfort, more especially as they have to borrow in most cases from the Bunyahs, to carry on their cultivation, and those extortioners exact enor- mous rates of interest. Kates are sometimes fixed with reference to peculiar circumstances

VILLAGE AND DLSTEICT OFFICERS. 39

in the season. About one-tenth of the Govern- ment lands is alienated in Jaglieers, but only a small portion is cultivated. The principal sources of revenue are land, fisheries, which are farmed, customs, excise on spirits and drugs, judicial fees, fines, and miscellaneous items. Colonel Rathborne considers the people of Sindh better off than in the Dekkan, but not so well as in Guzerat.

The permanent village and district officers are Urbabs, Mookecs, and Kolars. The Urbab is the hereditary head-man of the village ; he receives something in grain at harvest-time from the cultivators of his village. The ^'Mookee" is the head of the Hindoo portion of the community, and generally their domestic referee, as he is the adviser of their mercantile transactions.

The "Kolars" are hereditary officers; they receive a small portion of grain from the ge- neral produce, and their duty is to assist in municipal matters. They are supposed to be acquainted with the village boundaries, and prepared to point them out when requu'cd.

The Khyrpoor weights and measures differ slightly from tlaosc employed in the Govern-

40 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.

ment districts, as also does the currency. The hildar^ or old Company's rupee, being worth about one anna more than the ordinary Khyr- poor rupee.

It may be well here to say a word regarding the weights and measures of India. The unit of the ponderal system of British India is called a tola. It weighs 180 grains troy. From it upwards are derived the heavy weights, chet- tack, seer, and maund ; and by its subdivisions, the small, or jeweller's weights, called mashas, ruttees, and dhan. The gold mohur and the Company's rupee are of equal weight and fine- ness, as follows : — Weight, 180 grains troy. Pure metal, 165 grains. Alloy, 15 grains. The new copper coins of India weigh as follows : — The 1 anna piece 400 grains troy.

Meer Ali Moorad's territory contains some of the finest land in Sindh, and possesses great facilities for irrigation, in the Meerwah and other canals, which convey the water of the Jndus to most parts of the Khyrpoor country.

The population of the Khyrpoor territory is more equally balanced, I believe, as re-

MAHOMEDANS OF SINDH. 41

gards caste than other parts of the pro- yince. Indeed, I was assured that in the town of Khyrpoor, and otlier of the large towns, the Hindoos are equal in number to the Ma- homedans ; I say this, however, somewhat doubtingly, though a Mahomedan assured me that it was fact. The language commonly spoken is Sindhee, but Hindoostanee is suf- ficiently current for all purposes of commu- nication. The Mahomedan portion of the po- pulation of all Sindh may be divided into two classes : the Sindhees, who are descendants of the original Hindoo population, converted to Islamism by their conquerors dm-ing the time of the Beni Umayyeh Khalifs, — and the descendants of the Syeds, Afghans, Beloo- chees, Hubshees, and Sidies, African slaves, and others. Formerly great numbers of Zanzibarees, Hubshees, &c., found their way into Sindh fi.*om Muscat and otlier parts of Arabia. Their descendants are remarkable for their thievish, drunken, and lighting pro- pensities. These slaves were treated as in- mates of the family, and lived so comfort- ably that emancipation was to them rather an evil than a benefit. In some cases they

42 CHARACTER OF THE PEOPLE.

rose to distinction, and as confidential servants of the princes exercised much authority over their inferiors : Meer Shah Nowaz lias a confidential servant of this description — a sv/aggering, saucy fellow, who is supposed to rob his own master not a little. Occasionally a Sindhee Moslem marries a Sidyanee, and the offspring is called a Gaddo. The issue of a Gaddo by a Sindhee Moslem is called a Kambiani.

The Sindhee is much taller and more robust than the natives of India generally. His com- plexion is dark, with splendid teeth, and in build strong and muscular, but idle and apathetic, cowardly, addicted to intoxication, immoral in the extreme, unclean in his person, and invariably a liar.* His character is supposed to have been debased by the oppressive treat- ment he has experienced at the hands of the hardy and valorous hill tribes, and by his perpetual dependence on those who have plundered and impoverished him to the utmost. His Highness Meer Ali Moorad places no confidence in either Sindhees or Beloochees. His soldiery, as I have before said, are all mer-

"* Bm-ton.

BELOOCHEES OF SINDH. 43

mercenaries, chiefly Patlians, with a sprinkling of Khorassanees, Rohillahs, Mooltanees, &c.

The Beloochees of Sinclh are fairer in com- plexion and more powerfully formed than the SindheeSj and of more hardy constitution. The BeloocheCj says Bm-ton, '' is when intoxicated sufficiently brave in battle. He is debauched in his habits, slow in everything except the cunning of a savage, violent and revengeful, rough in manner, and coarse in all his tastes." This is, I think, rather too severe, for I alv/ays found both Sindhees and Beloochees courteous and ready to oblige, and without exception tlie most merry and checrfid people that I ever met with in the East. They overwhelm one with polite inquiries on meeting, commencing with the usual Mahomedan salutation of " Salaam Aleclc^^' or ^' Aleclcoom Salaam," or ''^ Khyr-o- Aufijet" followed by a torrent of inquiries whe- ther one is ''well," ''perfectly well;" "happy," "completely happy;" "contented," "quite contented;" " at ease," "joyful," " very joyful." "All the others" (meaning one's wife) "well, quite well," " children all well," " house pros- perous," &c. &c. ; and the more rapidly the questions are uttered the higher breeding docs

44 WANT OF EDUCATION.

it show. For my own part, after many attempts to display my manners I contented myself witli inquiries after liealtli and happiness, and gave the rest up in despair of ever attaining the requisite volubility to keep pace with my friends in the valley of the Indus.

Education is very limited in the Khyrpoor dominions, and as the schoolmasters are ex- tremely incompetent, it is not likely to extend until Meer Ali Moorad's finances will permit of his carrying into execution his projected re- forms. As a people too the Beloochees are singularly illiterate ; indeed several of the Talpoor family were, it is declared by an eminent writer, unable to read and write. Like the Europeans during the middle ages, the Beloochee prefers the pleasures of the chase to any other, thinks tlie training of a hawk a more enviable acquirement than reading or writing, and would rather be able to cut a sheep in two at a blow than be master of all the sciences ever studied in Boghdad or Bokhara. Meer Ali Moorad is, however, an exception to the above as regards his attainments; he writes a peculiarly fine hand, is deeply read in Persian lore, and had his naturally excellent abilities

INDIFFERENCE TO THE FINE ARTS. 45

been cultivated he would have been one of the first men of his day in the East.

Asiatics in general, and Beloochecs in par- ticular, have very little taste for the fine arts ; in fact, many of them cannot understand a common print or picture, an instance of which occurred in Sir Charles Napier's presence, to His Excel- lency's great amusement, shortly after the conquest of Sindh, when all the principal Be- loochee chiefs attended his Durbar. In the room where the ceremony took place hung a picture of Her Majesty, which being shown to them was seemingly viewed with sentiments of reverence and devotion ; but their numbers being great, many were unable to approach it, so Sir Charles took the picture down and handed it to one of the chiefs, who, with delight and admiration dej)icted in his counte- nance, held it aloft, bottom upwards, before tlie admiring eyes of his countrymen, who expressed their loyalty in suitable terms.

The women of Shidli, both Mahomcdan and Hindoo, are exceedingly industrious, and in the stillness of the night, long before break of day, their millstones may be heard preparing flour for next day's consumption. The Setts or Sahokars of

46 HINDOO AND MAHOMED AN WOMEN.

Sindli arc a very acute and enterprising race ; and, as I have before said, tlie merchants of Shikarpoor wander all over Central Asia, so that it is a common saying in Afghan- istan, that '^ you everywhere meet with a Jat and a Kerar," or Sindee Bunyah. The Hindoo females of Sindh generally, and those of Shikarpoor in particular, are said to be fond of intrigue, especially among their own people, but they rarely become so depraved as the Mahomedan women, who appear to consider the calling of a Kushee rather respectable than otherwise. The reason of this superiority in the Hindoo over the Moosulmaun is stated to be, that he exercises a stricter surveillance over his females and seldom drinks Blmng himself It is not considered respectable for either Hindoos or Moosulmauns to take their wives with them on their travels to foreign countries, and thougli they usually leave them under charge of relations and friends, the husband's honour occasionally suffers in his absence.

The Hindoos in Sindh, except religious mendicants and children who have not cut their teeth, all burn the bodies of their dead.

BRITISH NEGLECT OF SINDH. 47

Widows shave tlieir heads once only, and the rite of Suttee appears unknown in Sindh.

Both Sindhees and Beloochees are remarkable for depreciating their own country. If lying, cheating, or any other base act be laid to the charge of one of them, the party who hears the accusation at once remarks, " Oh, he is a Sind- hee," as much as to say, What could you then expect ?

The natives of Sindh (according to an official report) complain of the little countenance afforded them by British functionaries, and their general rejection when natives of India and others, to them foreigners, are candidates for employment. This is bad policy, as very injurious to Sindh, for these persons remit their savings to their families in India instead of spending them in the province.

It is to be regretted that the British Govern- ment ever withdrew their Resident from Khyr- poor, though one of our Residents was brought into ill repute by the notorious intrigues of a Mahomedan mistress and her son ; and if Khyr- poor rumour be at all correct, she so bullied the Meer that ho was absolutely afraid of her.

48 CIVIL AND CEIMINAL JUSTICE.

I am sure, however, that the presence of a Re- sident, for vv^hom His Highness should feel re- spect, Avould be very conducive to his own wel- fare and the welfare of his people ; as it would induce him to devote some portion of his time, though it were but a small one, to the affairs of Government, and would operate as a check upon several abuses that are continually per- petrated in his Eoyal Master's name by the Mooktyar Kar, who is said to be a great scoun- drel. The Meer is willing to receive, and has offered to bear the expense of, a Resident at his Court.

Civil Justice is administered by the ]\Ieer after a very patriarchal fashion. Important cases are decided by His Highness Meer Ali Moorad in person, but ordinary cases are decided by Mr Feeney, a very respectable European, perfectly master of the Sindhee and Hindoostanee lan- guages, who is in charge of the Meer's Udalut. These suits are generally of a very simple nature. Criminal justice is also occasionally administer- ed by the same officer, under the Meer's orders. It is well known that bribery and corruption to a great extent are practised amongst the native officials ; but all admit that the hands of

CRIMINAL JUSTICE AT KHYEPOOE. 49

Mr Feeney on this point are perfectly clean; indeed, I believe liim to be a most respectable and excellent person, as he is one of the kind- est and most benevolent of men.

The mode of administering criminal justice is somewhat arbitrary, but prompt and vigorous, a mode better adapted to insure the punish- ment of the guilty than the protection of the innocent. Criminals are confined by the local authorities, and their cases disposed of either by those functionaries, or by the higher powers, according as the crimes may be more or less grave in nature. The Meer's Kardars arc local judicial authorities, as well as revenue col- lectors.

His Highness possesses the power of life and death, but rarely exercises it. Fine is here, as in most semi-barbaric societies, the chief puni- tive measure. If a thief can pay a fine double the amount of the property stolen, the Kotwal, or Mooktyar, can release him there and then ; if not, he is put in chains, and thus remains till some person of influence intercedes for him. Sometimes treble the amount of property stolen is taken from the thief. The owner lias to pay one-fourth the value of his property, which is

VOL. n. . 4>

50 THIEVES A SOURCE OF EEVENUE.

taken by the Meer, with all that is squeezed out of the thief in excess.

In Farrington's report it is declared that many of the Jagheerdars, in the time of the Ameers, kept thieves on their estates, who were a source of revenue to their masters. Projoerty was stolen, but on the owner ap- pearing it was quietly restored to the Jag- heerdar on payment of one-fourth of its value. This tax is called '' Choutaee " or '' ChoongaP and still obtains in the territory of Meer Ali Moorad. Not unfrequently an informer (an accomplice from the same state) would, after extorting money for his information, conduct the owner to the spot where his property was concealed. We may therefore conclude that the Jagheerdar's sympathies would run hand in hand with his own interests.

Torture is occasionally resorted to for the purpose of extracting money from those who are reluctant to disgorge their dishonest gains, and for the purpose also of extracting confes- sions in criminal cases.

One method is to place the party astride on a charpoy ; his feet are then tied below with a rope as tightly as possible, thereby causing

MODES OF TORTURE. 51

intense pain ; but if this be insufficient to pro- duce confession, water is thrown upon the ropes, which causes them to shrink to such a degree that they cut the unhappy sufferer to the bone, causing so much agony that the poor wretch at once gives up his money, or confesses to what is required from him ; occasionally, it is supposed, confessing to a crime that he never committed, through sheer physical inability to support the agony inflicted. Another mode of torture is placing an iron ramrod, burning hot, between a man's thighs whilst he is hung by his thumbs from a beam.

The more common practice, however, is to jAace some beetles of a peculiar kind in a saucer upon the navel of the victim, binding it tightly on with a cummerbund. The beetles immediate- ly begin to gnaw the part, seeming to the wretcli- ed sufferer to be eating into his very entrails, and thereby causing him such intense agony and terror that he in a few minutes gives in. Monstrous as this appears, it is exactly what was practised a few years ago in the late East India Company's territories, as proved by the reports of the torture commissioners.

I myself witnessed a pretty specimen of the

52 HOTE Singh's barbarity.

Mooktyar Kar, Hote Singh's barbarity in return- ing* one morning from my ride. In the main street of Khyrpoor my horsekeeper said, '' Look, Sahib, there is a man hanging." I did look, and such was the fact, for there was a respectable- looking Hindoo suspended by one leg, on which the entire weight of his body rested, with the head downwards, and in this painful position he was kept by three or four of the Meer's Rohillas. Three other men, I was told, were to be similar- ly treated unless they consented to pay up. On inquiry I found that these persons were public contractors, who professed inability to pay the full amount of the revenue, in consequence of a large portion of the grain having been destroyed by wild hogs, and that flogging would be re- sorted to unless they agreed to fulfil their engage- ment. The sight, I confess, filled me with dis- gust, though I remarked that the bazaar people seemed to think very little of it ; and in a short time I heard that the courage of the defaulters had failed, and that they had given security for the amount claimed, viz. rupees twenty thou- sand.

The police in the Khyrpoor territory Is generally very efficient; that of the city is

KIIYRPOOE POLICE. 53

under the Kotwal, whose establishment consists of 20 Chokeydars and two Moonshees. Their pay is small, but tliey receive a certain quantity of grain, and the Kotwal is entitled to a handful of grass from every bundle, and a portion of all supjDlies brought in for sale to his bazaar, besides a pice monthly from every shop therein. These are the legitimate sources of income enjoy- ed by the Lord Mayor of Meer Ali Moorad's capital, but I fancy that his illegitimate sources of income would be found to amount to much more.

If an early re2:)ort of a robbery or murder be made to the nearest Kardar the escape of the perpetrator is next to impossible, as when once a Puggec or tracker is fairly laid on the trail he never loses it. These trackers are of no par- ticular tribe, and are generally cultivators, but are brought up to their business from boyhood, and are wonderfully expert at it. On a robbery taking place, the foot-print of the robber is marked and covered with a dish to prevent obliteration. A tracker is then sent for, who follows the track, step by stej^, till he comes up with the thief

If the robber, however, has robbed in that

54 TRACiaNG THIEVES.

district before, the tracker will generally tell by the first glance at the foot-mark who the offender is, and goes straight to his village and secures him. Thieves have been traced after an interval of time had elapsed, and to a dis- tance from the place of perpetration, almost in- credible ; through the running stream, over the newly-ploughed field, through standing corn, over the hard soil of the desert, through the crowded bazaar, and along the high road, the criminal was hunted down. When the foot- marks of thieves were traced to a village, the zemindar was held responsible for the alleged value of the property stolen unless he could show that the foot-marks went beyond. In cases of cattle theft, four times the number stolen were taken from the thief; three-fourths thereof being appropriated by the Sirkar.

Colonel Rathborne relates an instance of the theft of a camel which was tracked a certain distance, when the tracks were lost and the search abandoned. Several months afterwards the same tracker was employed in tracking some stolen animals in a distant district, and whilst doing so came across a camel's track, recognised it as that of the camel lie had lost

ORDEAL OF FIRE AND WATER. 55

trace of so many months previously, followed it lip, and secm^ed the thief, who pleaded guilty. It is said that a first-rate tracker never forgets a foot-print he has once seen.

Captain Marston, with a party of his police, assisted by trackers, followed seven robbers at the rate of fifty miles a day, came up with and captured them, after a march of above 200 miles, with the stolen property in their pos- session.

The ordeal of fire and water was frequently resorted to by the Ameers in the absence of direct proof. In the latter ordeal the accused was lowered into a well, placing his head under water ; at the very moment, a strong man shot an arrow as far as it would go, and another ran to pick it up. If the accused could remain under water till the arrow was brought back, which was signalized by the shaking of a rope, he was declared innocent ; but if he raised his head a moment before that, he was pronounced guilty. I have been shown a well at Khyr- poor in which this ceremony is said to have been performed not very many years ago.

In the trial by fire a trench was dug, seven cubits in length, and filled with firewood, which

56 WIFE MURDER.

was lighted, and the accused, having his legs encased in green plantain leaves, had to pass from end to end through the flames, his escape without injury being held as proof of his in- nocence.

The lifting of red-hot iron was also deemed a satisfactory proof of the same.

The shaving off of beards and parading a criminal on an ass, face to the tail, are punish- ments sanctioned to repress immorality in both sexes.

Murder in most cases arises from the in- fidelity or supposed infidelity of the wives or other near female relations of the murderers. Notwithstanding the strong warning of Sir Charles Napier on the subject, the practice of murdering women still prevails to a lamentable extent even in the country under British rule, and still more so, I am assured, in the Khyr- poor territory. The way in which this is ef- fected in the former districts is generally by strangulation, the husband making it appear that the unfortunate woman committed suicide. In Sindli the females of a family are looked upon as slaves. They are commonly sold by their parents to the highest bidder, without the

FEMALE IMMORALITY. 57

least regard to other objects ; and as the educa- tion of the women teaches them to look ii2:)on sensual indulgence as the chief aim and end of their existence, it can be no matter of astonish- ment if in after-life they often prove unfaithful and vicious. To restrain their evil propensi- ties uncontrolled authority was permitted over the lives and liberty of the women, and there was no punishment for him who killed a near female relative, if he could bring j)roof of her want of chastity ; and the word of the murderer was generally considered sufficient proof of the guilt of his victim [vide Parliamentary Eecords, vol. 49 of 1854]. Many women have been put to death on no other evidence than having been seen talking with a man when coming from the well with water. In fact, if the brutal husband was satisfied of her guilt, no man had a right to question him if he murdered her. She was his property, and he was the principal loser by her death. The lives of both offenders were taken if possible ; but the man was ge- nerally able to escape, though the woman was seldom so fortunate. Captain Young, Judge Advocate General, states that it has frequently happened that the wretched creature has been

58 PUNISHMENT OF MURDERERS.

made to kneel clown by her savage oppressor, her head being cut off with almost the for- mality of a judicial execution, the bystanders evidently considering it as such, and never attempting to interfere. Strange and almost incredible are some of the instances on record of these mm^ders. The man, as above stated, generally escaped ; but if at any future period he fell into the hands of the tribe whose honour had been insulted, they made no hesitation in murdering him, unless he was able to pm-chase his life with money, or by presenting a daugh- ter or other female relative in exchange for the unfortunate woman who had been murdered on his account. But, if the tribe were bent on blood, no lajise of time was sufficient to prevent their gratifying their revenge ; and a case is on record of a man having been murdered on account of a sujoposed intrigue with the mother of one of the murderers about twenty years previously.

The practice of wife-murder was carried out as savagely by the Hindoos as by the Mahome- dans; the Hindoo population of Shikarj^oor being alone, I believe, an exception to this rule. The women of that city are proverbially

SPEEDY PUNISHMENT OF ADULTERY. 59

unchaste, but no murders were ever heard of there in consequence. Not very long before I went to Khyrpoor a very barbarous murder of this kind was there perpetrated ; and, according to my informant, great doubt existed as to the guilt of the parties, who were merely seen laughing together, for which both were put to death on the spot by the barbarous husband. My informant too was not likely to have any leaning towards the parties if he believed them guilty ; for on hearing of the death of an East Indian woman at Kurrachee, who was caught by lier husband under circumstances which could leave no doubt of her guilt, and was shot by liim on the spot, he observed, '^ Atcha — Ins/// keea/^ '' Right — he did justice." I may men- tion that this East Indian woman had resided for some time at Khyrpoor, where her mal- practices were notorious !

The practice of selling wives on occasion of family quarrels is still common in Mcer Ali Moorad's territory, though His Highness pro- fesses, and perhaps believes, that slavery has been abolished in liis dominions. An instance of such sale occurred amongst my own servants whilst I was at Khyrpoor. My Bhecstf/, or

60 SALE OF A WIFE.

water-carrier, had a good-looking and very hard-working wife ; but they got on indifferent- ly together, and one day the Bheestun went off with her mother, brother, and his wife. The husband and his friends pursued the fugitives, who were overtaken at the Buttee Ferry, opposite to Larkhana, and brought back, under- going severe treatment, I was told, on the way. After arriving at Khyrpoor, the hus- band, having flogged the poor woman most cruelly, divorced her, though he did not pre- tend to any feelings of jealousy ; and, much to the annoyance of his own father, with whom she was a favourite, sold her for sixty rupees, £6 sterling, to the Afghan Jemadar of Horse, Hubbeeb Khan, with whom she seemed to lead a much less laborious life than that of a water-carrier, her scanty attire being cast away, and handsome garments befitting her change of position assumed ; whilst her princi- pal duty seemed to be preparing the Jemadar's pipe and handing it to him. These domestic matters were indeed very visible to myself, from my Bala Khana overlooking the platform on which the Jemadar passed most of his time on a char^oy^ smoking, when not in attendance on

HIGHWAY ROBBERY. 61

the Mecr. I was so much disgusted with the conduct of my Bhcestij in the above matter that I sent him about his business, much to the astonishment of my other servants, who seemed to consider him a very injured man, and after some days teased me into re-enter- tainino; him.

Highway robbery was formerly of frequent occurrence in Sindh, but, thanks to the excel- lence of the police, is now almost unknown. The favourite localities for these depredations were the road between Sukkur and Sliils:arpoor, and the vicinity of the Lukkee Pass, on the right bank of the Indus, and on the left bank, between Halla and the Khyrpoor territories. The robbers were principally from the hills towards Beloochistan ; they came down in parties of five or six, armed -with sword and sliield, and occasionally one or two of the number carried also a matchlock. These rob- bers were mounted on sorry-looking mares, but capable of such great endurance as to get over 50 or GO miles at a stretch in a rapid ambling pace, thus bafiiing the pursuit of the police. Nobut, the notorious leader of a rob- ber band, was, however, at length taken, and

62 PASTORAL TRIBES.

executed at Siikkur, wlien his followers dis- persed.

The principal of the cultivating and pastoral classes in Sindli are the Jutts, who are supposed to be the descendants of the aboriginal inhabit- ants, who were forced to embrace Mahomedan- ism. The Jutts are a hard-working race, who support themselves by rearing camels, feeding flocks, and cultivation. It is rare that a Jutt ever rises to any distinction, and then it is only as a cultivator and rearer of cattle. The Jutt women are extremely good-looking, and no less remarkable for theii' chastity and industri- ous habits. The Khosas of Upper Sindh are also a pastoral tribe, as are the Sumalis and some others.

The camel-drivers of Sindh are all Jutts ; and these people, being thoroughly acquainted with the ailments of the "ship of the desert," are always consulted in regard to the health of that most valuable but very delicate animal. For my own part, however, when a camel gets seriously sick, I give him up as what the Americans would call '' a gone 'coon," for I have had good experience of them in Indian field service, and consider them exceedhigly

CHARACTER OF BELOOCHEES. 63

''delicate plants;" and from what I heard of them in Sindh, they are as little hardy there as in India. Indeed, I was credibly assm^ed by a man upon whom I depend, that one of his camels actually died from the torment of tlie musquitoes during the inundation.

The Beloochees, as being the tribe of the late ruling powers of Sindli, and undoubtedly the most warlike race in the country, arc still looked on with something like awe ; they are feudatory lords of much of the soil, and inherit a good deal of the pride of their ancestors. They are said to be an ignorant, and indolent, and insolent race ; and though I am bound to concur in the two first charges, I cannot in the last, for I look upon His Highness Meer Ali Moorad as the perfection of Asiatic high breed- ing. His elder sons may indeed, in a small degree, want the high polish of their princely father, yet their genuine kindness of manner, and the kindness of manner of theu' relatives, is all that could be desired, and the frank and honest courtesy of their followers was but little behind them. The Beloochees are Jagheerdars and feudatories, consider themselves warriors, and as such look down with contempt on

64 THEIR HABITS AND COSTUME.

the cultivators of the soil. They are a very patriarchal people ; each tribe will obey its chief alone, to whom, as the father of a family, all look for counsel and direction, his opinion being held as law. Heads of tribes, families, and castes exercise an undefined influence among their members ; in default of the father the nearest male relative has the right of dis- posal of a girl in marriage. They have no idea of luxury or comfort ; their Tandas or villages are generally a collection of sheds, which the bipeds share with the quadrupeds, or at any rate a pet mare generally shares the accommodation of the mistress of the family. The Beloochee women are coarse and ill-favour- ed, slaves to the men, who pass their time, as far as possible, in smoking, drinking, or sleep. In the hot season the Beloochee wears a phjran, or muslin blouse, and loose paejammas^ or drawers of voluminous dimensions. In cold weather a warm clioga^ of Cabool cloth, or a poshteen^ literally, skin jacket, from the same country, is worn by all the hcau monde of Khyrpoor. A waistband of silk or gaudy-coloured cotton completes the suit. The head is never shaved ;

* Robe

BAKDS AND MINSTKELS. 65

but the liair, of wliich they are very proud, is twisted into a knot on the toj) of the head. The national cap covered with brocade is, to my thinking, far inferior to the turban in grandeur of appearance.

The Beloochee women wear a full petticoat, gathered in at the waist, and trousers, a cloth tied round the neck and under the arms, which covers the bosom, a muslin Diqyutta being thrown over the head. They are a very dirty people, and wear blue cloths, as such do not show the dirt, they say.

The Beloochees, in common with the Rajpoots of Cutch, maintain bards and minstrels, who sing of the deeds of their great departed, and are by no means neglectful of their own interests in respect to the living, whom they praise in the most sickening manner; indeed, I liave known that really sensible Prince, Meer Ali Moorad, sit for hours, listening with evidently intense satis- faction to the most absurd tirades of adulation, in wliich he was made to appear the greatest of warrior monarchs, far surpassing Alexander and every hero of antiquity known to them. The Luris are a tribe who follow the vocation of bards and minstrels ; and I remember one of

VOL. n. 6

66 MUSICAL INSTEUMENTS.

these men, who was upwards of a hundred years of age, and had been in the service of tlie Meer's ancestors since boyhood. Another of these minstrels was also far advanced in years, and he died whilst I was at Khyrpoor; his name was Juddarung [coloured everlastingly] ; and it was declared that after his interment his old horse was so grieved at the loss of his master, that he refused both grass and water for three days, and broke his head-rope repeat- edly to get to the grave of the deceased, where he was found smelling at the earth, and was with difficulty removed. The story was firmly believed by all classes at Khyrpoor.

The instruments used by the Meer's musicians are, I believe, from Surat or Bombay ; but the ordinary instrument of Sindh is tlie tomtom, which varies in size from about three feet in diameter to the calibre of a slop-basin, and this is the instrument employed at Naidches and the like, being beaten v/itli the fingers just to mark the time. The laro-er kinds are used in processions, carried on a camel or in a cart. A kind of guitar, formed out of a dried gourd, resembling the citar of India, is very generally played on at Nautches, of wliicli the Ameer,

KHYRPOOR PEIMA DONNA. 67

indeed I may say all Sindhians, are passion- ately fond ; and Kunchimnees, or professional dancers, are to be found in every large toAvn. To my thinking nothing can be more mono- tonous than these exhibitions, of which I saw a good many Avhen at Khyrpoor. That city has always been celebrated, I believe, for its danscuses. Burnes speaks of one, by name Jewun Buksh, who possessed great beauty. When I was there Ameer Buksh was the prima donna of the Khyrpoor Opera ; the other ladies of her Taeefa, or set, were Meena and Begum Buksh, but Ameer Buksli was by far the hand- somest of all. This lady was under the protec- tion of Plote Singh, tlie Hindoo minister, or Mooktyar Kar, of His Highness, but followed her calling as a lady of the Opera just as usual. The quantity of ardent spirits that the Kun- chunnees swallow of an evening is something astonishing. The appearance of these ladies is not confined to evening parties, for on all occasions of State Durbars, the Kunchunnees take care to attend, and generally derive largess when they do so.

The Peers, Seyuds, and other 2:)retenders to Moslem sanctity, arc tlic leeches who suck the

68 PEERS AND SEYUDS.

blood of the people, for they, being profoundly ignorant of their own religion, save its com- monest forms, place implicit faith in the holi- ness and sanctity of their spiritual advisers, and the efficacy of their prayers. Thus the country is overrun by these impostors ; indeed, an early writer, in describing the Sindhian character, observes :

" That the Sindhian shows no liberality but in feeding lazy Seyuds, no zeal but in propagating the Faith, no spirit but in cele- brating the Eed, and no taste but in orna- menting old tombs." The Ameers themselves submitted blindly to be thus priestridden ; and, strange to say, no one is more com- pletely so than Meer Ali Moorad, whose Conscience-keeper, Syed Jaffer Ali Shah, receives a fortieth part of His Highness' revenue, and has obtained unbounded influence over his master by his spiritual position. The four great Syed families settled in Sindh are Bakhari, Mathari, ShirazI, and Sekhlrazce ; who are all of the Sheeah persuasion. Under the government of the Ameers the Seyuds en- joyed immunity from capital punishment. Some of the finest lands are held by these

JEWISH ORIGIN OF BELOOCHEES. 69

drones in Inam, or gift ; and every cliief, how- ever small, and every community, has a Peer o 3Ioorshid, or spiritual guide, who does not maintain charge of their consciences for a trifle. The Faquirs of Sindh too arc a class that I do not admire, especially the stui'dy and truculent ruffians who solicit alms in a tone that will hardly admit of denial from the weak and peaceful cultivator.

The late Sir Henry Pottinger, who was probably more profoundly acquainted with the Beloochees than any other European writer, exj)resses it as his opinion that they are of Israelitish descent, as a branch of the Af- ghans ; and he quotes certain instances of resemblance between the laws of the Beloo- chees and those of the ancient Jews. Thus, that in the event of the death of a husband his brother is bound to marry the widow, and any children she may have are heirs to the deceased [see Deuteronomy xxv. 5 and 6] ; if a married woman elope, she and her pa- ramour are to be put to death, ^' that evil may be put away ;" and a man may only divorce his wife according to rules similar to those of the Jews. The opinion of Sir Henry

70 APPEAEANCE OF BELOOCHEES.

Pottiiiger evidently inclines to this, that al- though Beloochee customs have been much changed by the frequent invasions of their country, yet they may have preserved some of their ancient laws, and that those were Jewish laws of the Covenant. The Beloochees, however, do not appear at all flattered at the supj^osition, and stoutly re- pudiate the idea of any mixture of Jewish blood in their veins, declaring themselves of pure Arab origin. Be that, however, as it may, there is much eminently Jewish in the api^earance of the Beloochees ; certainly not that of the small-statured Jew of England, but of the tall, noble-looking Jew of the East, as he is to be seen in the Levant at this day, and as portrayed by the great Italian masters.

It is supj)osed that the Beloochees originally came from Mukran ; in figure they are large and muscular, complexion dark, nose peculiarly aquiline, and eyes of the most expressive description. The hair is generally worn long, falling in ringlets over the neck and shoulders, a large turban covering the head (I speak of the Hill Beloochees), and a dress of dirty cloth, shaped in the fashion of that worn

THE MIANI TRIBE. 71

by the ancient Jews, being an enormously- full petticoat, something similar to the flow- ing '' Juklanilla" of the Albanians. The Be- loochees, however, do not observe the Jewish law [see Deuteronomy, chapter xxii. 1 1] pro- hibiting the wearing of ''woollen and linen together ; " but in this they may have adopted the custom of the neighbouring tribes. More- over, the climate of Beloochistan is, I believe, much more severe than that of Syria ; but in Sindh this costume is ill-adapted for the climate, and is rarely seen in Sindh Proper.

The Miani tribe are all fishermen, or boat- men, on the Indus and its tributaries, and from their occupation and habits are almost amphibious. They are the most robust and active race in Sindh, and their frankness of bearing and lively temperament impress stran- gers in their favour. This tribe reside entirely on the banks of the river and Lake ]\Iunchur, where whole families of these people live entirely in their boats after the Chinese fashion. The women row or steer the boats as vigorously as the men, and are as power- fully built as their partners. I was present on one occasion at their Ecd, or festival, and

72 CHAEACTER OF THE MIANIS.

witnessed their national dance. The women of the tribe came all dressed in their best ; their figures appeared large and thick- set, their complexions extremely dark, probably from constant exposure to the burning sun of Sindh. Indeed few, except the younger ones, had any pretension to good looks; their orna- ments too were even large in proportion to the amplitude of their charms, their nose- rings seemingly threatening to break through the cartilage of that feature. In their national dance both sexes join at marriages and festivals, forming a circle round the musicians, moving in slow time, with clapping of hands and stamp- ing of the feet. The Mianis are generally poor, and dissipation increases their poverty, although they are very industrious, being constantly occupied in the manufacture of mats and baskets, which they weave A^ery tastefully from the reeds and grasses growing on the bank of the Indus. When residing in the large towns on the river, the Mianis occupy a separate quarter, living in Landees, where the men sell spirits and beat tomtoms, and the ladies dance and do their best to decoy passers

by-

PULLAH FISHING. 73

The Pullali fisliciy, for which the Indus is celebrated, is entirely in the hands of the Mianis. This is the Hilsah, or sable fish of the Ganges, and is considered the most delicate fish that swims. It is caught in this wise : — The fisherman, being provided with a hollow float of about five feet in diameter, a bag net, having a string tied to the narrow end, attached to a long pole and a stiletto, after commending himself to the protection of God, j^ropels liis float into the middle of the stream ; he then turns his face up the river, and as he floats down thrusts the net into deep water, its mouth being kept down the stream, and the narrow end drawn up by the string held in his hand. The fish, which lie with their heads up-stream, strike through the opening into the net. When a fish announces his presence by the shock which he gives to the net, the string is slackened, the pole raised, and the net drawn up ; by tliese movements the net is first opened and then closed upon the fish, which when brought to the surface is pierced by the stiletto, dejDosited in the hollow float, and the net is sunk again. The fisherman after a time makes for the shore, betakes himself with his gear to his former

74 THE PULLAH FISH.

starting point, and launches forth again. The Piillah fish is considered a great delicacy, but I was rather disappointed in it, as it is without exception the most bony fish that swims, and is so rich as to run into oil on one's plate. On first coming in season the Pullah fish fetches a good price in the large towns upon the Indus ; but as vast quantities are captured it soon be- comes cheap, and this, with the Dumbrat, the Poekee, and Gundun, forms the principal article of food of the Khyrpoor people, who are too poor to afford much meat. The Pullah fish comes in season about March.

CHAPTER III.

Hindoos in Sindli — Their Peculiar Customs — IndifTerence in Mat- ters of Caste and Religion — Petty Traders — The Sindhi Language — Dialect of the Beloochees — Khyrpoor Artificers — Chellas — JMceua — Manufacture of Arms at Hyderabad — Sword of Timour — Division of Time — Sindhian Eras — The Year — The Seasons — • Months, Weeks, and Days — Minor Divisions — Indian Astronom- ical Year — Khyrpoor Water-Clock — The Ghurryal — Mode of marking Time at Khyrpoor — Dejee Kot — Extraordinary Gun — Its Inscription — Ali Moorad's Policy — Mutiny of the Meer's Troops — Embargo on his Breakfast — The Hukeem Emaum Ood Deen Khan — Anecdote of a Beloochee Chief — Anecdote of the Rajah of Wunpurty — The Hukeem in London.

The Hindoos in Sindh are emigrants, or the descendants of emigrants, from Mooltan and other comitries to the north, and are divided into two classes, the Lohanas and the Bhatias. With trifling exceptions the entire trade of Sindh is in the hands of tlic Hindoos, who make enormous smns by renting the revenues of the country. At least, such was the practice in the time of the Ameers ; and such is still

76 THE LOHANO CASTE.

the practice in the Khyrpoor territory, where the necessities of the sovereign ever compel him to forestal his revenues. The renters of them of course make a good thing of their bargain, as the Meer will consent to any sacrifice as a means of present gratification ; for the present is all that Mahomedan princes attend to, and the consequence is that they are always in im- poverished circumstances. In former times, when all Sindh was under the Ameers, the poor Sahocars used to be awfully squeezed by them ; yet even then they made their calculations accordingly, and managed to accumulate riches. Now the case is altered, for though His Highness Meer Ali Moorad would very gladly extract some of his Hindoo subjects' rupees from their rigidly-closed money-bags, he very well knows that any act of violence would prejudice his own interests.

The Memuns are said to be Hindoos from Cutchee, who became Mahomedans, and im- migrated into Sindh ; they are a people deserved- ly respected. The Lohano caste of Hindoos are divided into two great classes, according to their several occupations.

1. The Amils, or Government servants.

THEIE PECULIAR CUSTOMS. 77

2. TliG Saliocars, merchants, &c.

The first have adopted the Moosulmaun costume J wear the Sindh cap, the beard long, the sootan, or drawers, and only shave the crown of the head. They do not, however, trhn the moustaches according to the Sunnat ; they often put on the sectarian mark, and wear the ppwij or shirt, open on the left side, whilst the ]\Iahomedans wear it so on the right. They have not adopted cii'cumcision, and neither eat nor intermarry with Moslems. They eat the same food as the Sarsudh Brahmuns, and buy flesh from Mahomedans, as it is unlawful for them to take life. Their marriages generally cost from 500 to GOO rupees. They seldom take a second wife unless the first prove barren. They do not object to marry a widow. In the Khudabadi caste of Lohano, if a girl becomes a widow at an early age, her deceased lius- band's brother generally marries her. Tlie preliminary ceremonies are the Mungno, or be- trothal, which is conducted by tlie intervention of a Sarsudh and aZajeh, or musician, and their wives. Tlie males enter into a treaty with the bride's father, the females arrange matters with the women. If all goes on smoothly, they

78 RELIGION OF HINDOOS.

on tlie first fortunate day send some sweet- meats, cocoa-nuts, and a few rupees to the sister or sister-in-law of the brideQ:room. This con- eluded, the parties patiently await the means of matrimony. The nu23tial ceremony lasts from nine to 30 days. Much feasting takes place — Brahmuns and Gooroos read out the different formulas ; and, lastly, the bride is taken to her husband's house.

The Hindoos in Sindh pay as much veneration to the sanctified resorts of the Moslem as Ma- homedans themselves. Many were compelled by the Ameers to abandon their religion, the most trivial circumstances being used as pre- texts for such oppression. Thus any one who in conversation mentioned the word russee, a rope, was supposed to have invoked the pro- phet, and was compelled to perform the first rite of Islamism. It is on official record that the head Moonshee at Khyrpoor would never write the name of the village of Russoolabad, calling it always Wuzeerabad.*

In the Khyrpoor country there are very many Hindoos in the Meer's employ, but they all wear the Sindh cap, and so complete- * Blue Book, vol. 49 of 1S54.

INDIFFERENCE TO CASTE. 79

ly adopt the Mahomedan dress and manner as to be scarcely recognizable. The Hindoos of Sindh care very little for caste prejudices; in fact, the force of circumstances has com- pelled them to throw overboard most of their scruples on the subject of defilement. They are generally of fair complexion ; some few live in comfortable style in the large cities, but the ordinary Bunny as in every bazaar are much the same mean and cringing race ; filthy in their persons, and still more so in their dwellings than Mahomedans themselves. The Hindoo women dress precisely the same as the Mahomedans. As a class the Hindoos of Sindh are far less respectable than those of Hindoostan; but it is only justice to them to declare that I never met with anything but good faith in pecuniary transactions, on the part of the Sindh Sahocars, through whom I remitted considerable sums. Indeed their honesty in such transactions is proverbial.

In the countries north-west of the Indus the Hindoos are far less particular in matters of caste and religion than their stricter brethren in India ; but possibly this may have arisen from the persecution they have experienced on

80 PETTY TRADERS.

the part of the Mahomedans. But few Brah- muns and Grooroos are to bo met with in Sindh, and it was only at Shikarpoor that they were allowed to celebrate their festivals; but in the districts under the British Government those restrictions are now removed, and Meer Ali Moorad is desirous of affording all possible encouragement to a people who mainly supply him with the sinews of war. 3Ioreover his Mooktyar Kar and others of his principal and most trusted servants are Hindoos. To those acquainted with Khyrpoor I need hardly mention that I particularly refer to the Meer Moonshee Kissundass, his brother Bissundass, with their nephews and sons. Kissundass is a man of first-rate ability, and his brother is but little, if at all, inferior in qualifications. They are respected by all classes, and are, I believe, as honest men as it is possible to find in the unhealthy atmosphere of any Indian Durbar.

In every corner of Sindh and Beloochistan, however small the village, is to be found a Hindoo, with his petty shop of groceries; in his own person practising the most intense self- denial till his means have increased. These men moreover make themselves so useful in the

MODE OF SETTLING BAKGATNS. 81

pecuniary matters of tlie wild and bloodthirsty Maliomedan tribes amongst whom they dwell, that self-interest very generally insures their protection. As the didlaul, or broker, in Plin- dustan generally settles every bargain, so the like practice has been introduced by the Hin- doos into the countries west of the Indus, where, according to Captain Postans, the smallest bargain is never struck between two natives without the intervention of the Hindoo dullaul or broker : who, covering his hand with a large cloth, runs backwards and forwards be- tween the parties, grasping alternately a hand of each. The cloth is used to cover certain signs which are conveyed as to the amount oifered, by squeezing the joints of the fingers, which stand for units, tens, or hundreds, as the case may be : thus the bystanders are kept in the dark as to the price at which an article is sold, and irritation avoided at offering before others a lower sum than is expected would be taken. This is precisely the practice that obtains in India.

The Hindoo traders of Sindli are generally abject in manner, but those in Government employ arc as independent in bearing as

VOL. II. 6

82 THE STNDIII LANGUAGE.

the Maliomcdans tliemselves. All classes alike eat animal food, and are not at all particu- lar touching its quality ; goat's flesh is pre- ferred to that of sheep by Mahomedans, but the lower and working classes can afford very little animal food, and subsist chiefly on luwari cakes and fish. The wealthy enjoy rich food, but the pillaus of Sindh are too greasy for my taste ; and as the Sindhians cannot bear anything pungent, a good curry is not to be met with there. Milk, curds, and cakes of coarse flower are the chief food of the shepherds and wandering tribes.

The Sindhi language is of Hindoo origin, being a corruption from the Sanscrit, written in a peculiar character, called the Kliooda Wadi, in which the Hindoos heretofore kept all their accounts ; but this will probably be superseded by the newly-established Sindhi character, unless the Hindoos, with their usual reluctance to change, persist in adhering to the Khooda Wadi character.

The Beloochees have a peculiar dialect of their own, called Serai, in some degree re- sembling the Pushtoo of the Afghans; but it

KHYEPOOR ARTIFICERS. 83

is merely oral, and most barbarous in soundj — indeed few keep it up. In Upper Sindb, Punjalee is much used by traders and others having intercourse Yvdth Mooltan.

The artificers of Khyrpoor are generally of the most indifferent description, though you are told that in the time of Meer Roostum the finest workmen in Sindh w^ere to be found at Khyrpoor, which was then famous for its armourers, saddlers, embroiderers, goldsmiths, &c. But then it was the residence of the Talpoor Ameers of Upper Sindh, His Highness Meer Ali Moorad alone excepted, with all their retainers, and the revenues of the family, about nine lakhs of rupees per annum, were entirely spent within its walls ; whilst now one fiftieth part of that sum is not expended there by its present sovereign. No wonder, then, that all the best workmen have emigrated to Bombay, or other places where they could find a more profitable field for their skill. The goldsmiths of Khyrpoor, with one ex- ception, are very coarse workmen at present. This man makes rings of a peculiar kind, which arc certainly very delicate and bcauti- fid ; they are called chcllcij and arc worn three

6*

84 MANUFACTURE OF ARMS.

in a set ; a tliin ring is first put on, then a broader one inlaid Avitli a kind of enamel, called Meena, of various rich colours, lastly another thin one, which completes the set. This kind of enamel, it is said, can only be made by one family in Sindli, who possess tlie secret, which was brought from Persia by an Ameer, who had been there captive, in the time of Nadir Shah, and learned the art during his captivity. Chellas of silver meena are worn two in a set, and both kinds form tlie love-gifts of Sindh. Fine golden ornaments, as also those of enamel, gold snuff-boxes, Kulleans and Hookahs ornamented with gold or silver, are still procurable to order at Hyderabad.

Sindli was ahvays celebrated for its arms, which were very superior to anything fabri- cated in India, especially the matchlock and gun barrels, which are twisted in the Damas- cus style. The Ameers used to procure the very best to be had from Persia and Con- stantinople, and though such were valued highly, the arms manufactured in Sindh were nearly if not quite equal in goodness and appearance; for they are inlaid with gold,

MATCHLOCKS OF SINDH. 85

and as liiglily finished as the foreign barrels. The Ameers always appreciated the English locks, but thought our barrels too slight for their heavy charges; to this, however, Meer Ali Moorad was an exception, as he knew the superiority of English guns over all others, and, as I have before said, took back with him a very large supply of the finest guns made by the first makers in London. His Highness, moreover, brought with him to England the head gunsmith of Khyrpoor, who thoroughly understands his business, as far as it can be learned in India, and I have no doubt profited by his frequent visits to the establishments of Messrs Purdey, Lancaster, &c., where he passed a good deal of his time when in London. I have seen a very nice-looking rifle of this man's make, and was assured that it shot very strong and true. He also turns out excellent knives, of an English pattern. The match- locks of Sindh are heavy, awkward weapons, and most unwieldy, from the stock, which is cmiously shaped, being out of all proportion too light for the barrel ; but they take a very heavy charge, and throw a ball to a gi-eat distance.

86 ' SWOED OF TIMOUR.

The Ameers had agents in Persia, Syria, and Turkey, for the purchase of guns and swords, and spared no expense to obtain the finest %Yeapons — half a lakh of rupees has been given for a single blade. The value of a sword is judged by its temper and watering ; and Meer Ali Moorad has some very fine ones, especially a sword that is declared to have be- longed originally to Timour Liing^ or, as Euro- peans style him, '' Tamerlane." The blades of Sindhian manufacture are very good ; they are large, cmwed sabres, very sharp, and high- ly tempered, but much heavier than the or- dinary sword-blades of India. The scabbard has a receptacle for a small knife also. The belts are generally of leather, richly embroider- ed, and those of the Meer were very handsome- ly mounted in gold. The best shields are of rhinoceros' hide, handsomely embossed with gold or silver, and inferior ones with brass. The chain armour of Sindh was highly esteem- ed ; the finest was manufactured at Hyderabad, with helmet and shield to the suit ; but the days of chain armour have passed away, unless for exportation into central Asia. The Sindh- ians take much pride in their embroidered

DIVISION OF TIME. 87

pouches and belts, and when travelling are generally fully equipped, if they can obtain permission for it. The workmen at the Meer's capital arc of the worst description, except embroiderers, and some of their productions are very tastefid as regards colours. The leather of Sindh is much superior to any prepared in India, but the saddlery, boots, and slippers made at Khyrpoor are all of the coarsest description. I was told that there were only two carpenters in the place ; and judging from a table that one of them constructed for me, I cannot speak favourably of his work, either as regards strength or finish, though it answered my pur- pose to write on.

Time passed rather heavily at Khyrpoor, as our books were read and re-read; but I devoted some portion of each day to making notes of what I gleaned by inquiry, and I had a very intelligent Sindhce servant, who was by calling a barber, and could afford information on all local subjects.

In Sindh, as in India, we find two kinds of years, viz. —

1st, The Mahomedan Hijreo, or Lunar Year,

88 SEASONS.

2nd, The Hindoo, or Limi-Solar Year. The former requires no description, being the most simple of all divisions of time, and well known as the year used by all Ma- homedan nations. The latter is a more com- plicated arrangement, as the months are cal- culated according to the revolutions of the moon ; but the seasons are rendered subser- vient to both solar and lunar year, by the addition of an embolismic month to one of the three seasons successively, every third year ; and at such times the season into which the intercalary month is introduced contains five instead of four lunar months.

In India proper the year is considered to consist of three seasons of four months each, viz. : —

1st, the cold season. 2nd, the hot season. 3rd, the rainy season. The Sindhees reckon only two seasons, viz. : — 1st, Si3^aro, or the cold season, six months in duration, from Assan to Phaghan, included. 2nd, Unhalo, or Ashar, the hot season, which contains the rest of the months.

HINDOO ERAS. 89

In India the Adhikmasa, or embolismic month is always introduced between March and September ; but in Sindh the emboHsm does not appear to be confined to any particular time. Astronomical calculations are made by the Brahmuns, who prepare their Almanacs, '' JuntrihaU^^ every year ; these, however, are but little used by the masses, as the Brah- muns write them in Sanscrit, in order to render them unintelligible to the common people, for the purpose of constituting them- selves the sole explainers of their meaning.

The era usually referred to in official and revenue papers and accounts in Sindh is the Faslee ; but in books, inscriptions, and Mahomedan writings generally, the Plijreo is employed. The Hindoos of Sindh use the Sambat, or Vikramaditya's Era, which dates from the death of that monarch at Ujjam, A. c. 57. They are cognizant of the existence of the several Yoga^ or periods, and know that the present is the Kali Yoga, although they rarely, if ever, assume its commence- ment as an era.

90 DIVISIONS OF THE MONTHS.

THE MONTHS.

SINDHEE, EXGLISH.

1. Katti October-November.

2. Nabri November-December.

3. Pob December-January.

4. Magb January-February.

5. Phaggun February -March.

6. Cbait March- April.

7. AVaishakh April-May.

8. Jeth May- June.

9. Akhar June- July.

10. Sawan July- August.

11. Baddo August-September.

12. Assu September-October.

The era of Sambat or Vikramaditya com- mences on the first Katti, the first month.

The Indian astronomical year commences on the first Chait. As regards calculations of eclipses, declinations, &c., and even the common almanacs, the Brahmuns throw every possible difficulty in the way of research.

Both the Hindoo and Arabian week com- mence with Sunday, but the days are dif- ferently named, as follows : —

MINOR DIVISIONS OF TIME.

91

SINDHEE HINDOO DATS.

STNDIIEE MAHOMEDAN DATS.

1.	Artar	Sun's day-	Acliar.
2.	Sumar	Moon's day	Sumar.
3.	Mungiil	Mars' day	Angaro.
4.	Biidhar	Mercury's day	Arba.
5.	Vrispat	Jupiter's day	Kb amis.
6.	Sukrawar	Venus' day	Jummo.
r.	Chencliar	Saturn	Cbancbar

Tbe minor divisions of time in Sindb are : 1st, Pabur . . . . Watcbes ; of wbicb tbere are eigbt in our twenty- four bours. 2nd, Gburry . .Hours ; equal to about twenty-four minutes of our time.

3rd, Pul Moments ; of wbicb tbere

are sixty in tbe Gburree. Time is calculated at Kbyrpoor by a water clock very similar to tbat of tbe ancients. Tbe following description of tliis instrument is to be found in tbe Ayeen Akbcry : ''Tbey make a vessel of brass, or any otbcr metal, 100 tanks (about two-tbirds of a seer) in wcigbt. It is tbe sliape of a cup, narrow downwards, and perforated at tbe bottom, so as just to

93 KHYRPOOR WATER CLOCK.

admit a golden pin that is in weight one mashah, and is in length the breadth of five fingers. The vessel is twelve fingers in dia- meter. It is put into a bason of pure water, in a place where it cannot be affected by the wind, or shaken by any accident. When the vessel is full of water, one ghurry is elapsed, and in order to give information thereof to those who are far or near, one stroke is given upon the ghurryal; for two ghurries, two strokes, and so on. When a Pahur is past, they first ring the number of ghurries in the Pahur slowly, and then reiterate them quickly. The Emperor Baber, in his commentaries, says as follows: ''Formerly at the end of every pahur they rang only the number of ghurries, so that the pahur was not known. I com- manded that in future, after striking the ghurry, they should also ring the number of the pahur."

The same author thus describes the Grhurryal : — " The Ghurryal is an instrument made of Httst Joash, resembling a frying pan, only somewhat thicker, and is suspended by a string."

The following was the explanation given

MODE OF MASKING TIME. 93

to me of the manner of marking the time at Khyr^DOor. Immediately at sunset eight strokes on the Ghurryal mark the expiration of the eight ghurries of the watch, then 32 strokes called dutcher are struck to mark the termin- ation of the 32 ghurries or four watches of the day. The number of ghurries in the day watches however depends on the length of the day, and very little attention is paid to their exactitude, as time is of small value to any one at Khyrpoor.

At dawn of day a six-pounder is fired from the Meer's park, and at the third ghurry after sunset, the first nukkara, or kettle-drum, is beat at the Jcottvallee. At the termination of the watch, the second nukkara is beat, and at the end of the fourth ghurry afterwards, the third nukkara is beat, this being immediately fol- lowed by a gun from the park. After which any persons found in the streets are liable to 1)0 apprehended by the cJioJcedars as evil-doers. As in striking the ghurryal punctuality is not much attended to, so the same may be said of the beaters of the nukkara, who beat them or not just as they happen to think of the duty ; and as in the evening those worthies are ge-

94 DEJEE.

nerally under the influence of hJmng^ they are not very particular in following out the regula- tion, and the more so as there is no one to discover their neglect, since the Kotwal after his evening meal and postprandial potations is in all probability extended on a charpoy in a happy state of obliviousness.

About sixteen miles south of Khyrpoor is the hill fort of Dejee, a place of little strength, as it is commanded by a spur of the range of hills that runs from Roree in a south-westerly direction. Thus it must soon be reduced by European artillery, but I have little doubt would be impregnable to the attacks of a native force unprovided with heavy siege guns, as the hill is on three sides quite inaccessible by esca- lade, from being so scarped as to be almost perpendicular ; and on the only accessible point the defences are very strong, the ascent ex- tremely steep, and every step of that ascent commanded by the artillery and loop-holes above. The guns in this fortress appeared to be, however, in a very unserviceable state, and it is now seemingly made use of only as a state prison. On the most elevated bastion to the westward is a very long brass gun, which has

INSCRTPTION ON A GUN. 95

at some time bm^st and been repaired. I am afraid to mention liow many miles this gun, ac- cording to the Killahdar's solemn assurance, will propel a ball, but from its appearance few artil- lery men would. I think, be found courageous enough to make the ex^^eriment ; the gun bears the following inscription : —

Klin's J V-JElnAAA

^^'K'GVNUTL

\0

^fAVi

0^

On a long brass 12-pounder within the third gate is this inscription in Persian: ^'Surkar

96 ALi moorad's policy.

Meer Solirab Khan Talpoor, Cast by[Maliomed Junimal." Date illegible, looked like 1208. Also a short gun with the like inscription.

For many years after our entrance into Sindli, Meer AH Moorad refused to admit any British offi- cer into his fort; and, although at the marriage of His Highness, a visit of ceremony was made by the Political Agent, and salutes were fired from every bastion of the fortress of Dejee in honour of that functionary, as the representative of the British Government, the Meer evaded every remark upon the strength of his fort, every approach to which was strictly guarded; and though he received his guests with all honour and distinction at the Fijze Baugli^ near the village of Dejee, he declined to admit any of them into his stronghold, even at a season of peaceful rejoicing. From the time that Meer Ali Moorad fled from Khyrpoor in early man- hood, he held his little court, if court it could be styled, in sullen and baronial style, standing aloof fi'om Belooch clanship, and for a time pursuing a negative course with reference to the British Government, until circumstances compelled him to a more close connection with us ; and on all occasions, as before observed, he

MUTINY OF THE MEEr's TROOPS. 97

lias proved himself our faithful ally. In early- life His Highness maintained a strong standing force of mercenaries from Hindoostan, Cabool, the Punjaub, Bliawulpoor, &c., to the great detriment of his resources, which were quite unequal to the expense of their maintenance ; and this was continued after he attained the Turban of Reis. Indeed, it is a notorious fact, that on one occasion his troops at Khja-poor mutinied for pay, which was greatly in arrears, and adopted a novel course to obtain it, as they suddenly rose, and taking possession of every avenue to His Highness, would not allow any of his personal retainers to pass out, or his own breakfast to pass in, until he had pledged him- self to pay up a large portion of the arrears due, and a British officer, then at Khyrpoor, guaran- teed the fulfilment of the promise. This cir- cumstance is well remembered by many at the Meer's capital.

The principal member of the suite of His Highness Meer Ali Moorad, when in England, was the Hukeem Emaum ood deen Khan, a very learned and highly-polished gentleman, of most distinguished bearing and appearance, who had been much in the society of European

VOL. II. 7

98 HUKEEM EMAUM OOD BEEN KHAN.

gentlemen of position in India, and was de- lighted with London society. The Hukeem was not a native of Sindh ; indeed, he was the first of his family who had ever been in that comitry, for his ancestors had long been settled in the hills north of Delhi. He had himself been all his life in courts, and was personally known to several of the princes of Rajahj^oo- tanah, having, as he assm'ed me, held high offices successively under the Rajahs of Oodey- poor, Jessulmeer, and Biccaneer. The cause of his quitting the service of the last-named prince was, he told me, an unfortunate rivalry between the Rajah and himself; and he, the Hukeem, being the favoured lover, his royal master gave him his dismissal ; upon which he crossed the desert to Khyr230or, where he re- ceived a ready welcome from Meer Ali Moorad, with whom he remained about ten years. The Hukeem had evidently seen a great deal of life, and was generally liked and esteemed, as both his manners and appearance were highly in his favour. On first coming to England he was much trusted by the Meer, and, I believe, served him very faithfully; but His Highness

THE HUia:EM. 99

is of rather a suspicious temperament, and the Hukeem fell under his displeasm'e. The ill-feel- ing towards him was moreover increased by the Meer ordering him off to India at a few hours' notice, to accompany his son Meer Fyze Mahomed, who was not in good health. The Hukeem, having at the time a love affair on his hands, positively refused to go, and his re- fusal being resented by his royal master, an ill feeling was caused thereby. Mutual friends after a time brought them together, but there never was a cordial reconciliation ; and the Meer j^i'ofessed to be dissatisfied in money matters, though, I believe, quite without cause, as I examined the accounts, which seemed clear and intelligible. The Hukeem certainly ex- pended a great deal of money in London, but the possession of this he accounted for, and I considered that his royal master's suspicions were quite unfounded. In society the Hid^eem made himself particularly agreeable; his man- ners were highly polished, and he possessed a vast fund of anecdote. Speaking to him one evening of the escape from Hyderabad of a raj all, whom I knew, from some Arabs who

100 ANECDOTE OF A BELOOCHEE CHIEF.

held him in durance there, he related an anec- dote of a Beloochee chief, the Governor of Lheree, as follows : —

^'Suspicions being entertained by Mr Ross Bell, Political Agent in Upper Sindh and Be- loochistan, regarding Mullah Mahomed, Go- vernor of Lheree, a considerable town in Cutch, rather to the eastward of Bhag, who was sup- posed to be in treasonable correspondence with the young Khan of Kilat, then a fugitive in the mountains, — Mr Ross Bell, who ruled Upper Sindh and Beloochistan with an iron hand, de- termined on seizing him ; this, however, was not to be accomplished by force, for, had force been attempted, the Mullah would have fled to the hills and bid defiance to pursuit ; so the po- litical agent employed other and surer means. Mr Bell is described as a man of ' "vdgorous talent, resolute, unhesitating, devoid of public morality, and vindictive ;' so, to attain his end and capture the Mullah, he corrupted his Naib, one Mahomed Shurreef, a great villain, who for a sum of money seized and gave up his chief to the British authority. To make sure of the prisoner, in case of attempts at rescue, a strong escort of fifty Sindh horsemen and thirty Be-

MULLAH MAHOMED. 101

loocliees had been sent to receive and bring him down to Shikarpoor.

"Mullah Mahomed, though somewhat advanced in years, was still full of vigour and activity ; he was, moreover, a man of undaunted courage, and in horsemanship unequalled, thus was not likely to yield his life without a struggle, and he felt fully assured that if taken to Shikarpoor the po- litical agent would put him to death, as he had hundreds of others, for his military executions are said to have been bloody and desolating. The escort, having marched all night, in addition to some forty miles the preceding day, were not sorry to halt at daybreak, on the Mullah's re- quest to the Jemadar to that effect, in order to say his prayers. Accordingly the men dis- mounted, and the weather being piercingly cold, a large fire was lighted, around which the wearied troopers sat or lay, some, indeed, being asleep. The Mullah's prayers being ended he sat down to warm himself, at the same time glancing around. The troopers were all off their guard except four sentries, one on either side of the fire, in which there was a large and weighty stick, which the Mullah laid hold of, and suddenly rising with a shout in the face of

102 THE mullah's escape.

the startled sentry, passed him like lightning, and leaping on his mare, cleared the crowd in a moment, and was away towards the hills. Car- bine and matchlock balls fell like hail around him, but he was untouched ; the Mullah's mare had the speed of the wind, and quickly dis- tanced the pursuers, who, all but six, who were particularly well mounted, gave up the chase in despair. Those six, however, held on, and three of them were so well mounted that after a time they neared the Mullah, who had slackened his pace for the mare to recover her wind. Death then appeared certain, as the sabres of tlie horsemen glittered in the sun ; but the Mullah did not lose courage, and suddenly wheeling round, he struck the two leading horsemen down in succession with his club, and again pushed on towards the hills, near the foot of which was a wide and very deep and rocky ravine. Over it the mare sprung, but unhappily her strength was much exhausted, and she fell back into it, injuring herself irreparably in the fall. The Mullah was unhurt, but had only just time to scramble out and make for the hills when the six pursuers came up ; however, not one of their horses would take the leap, and they lost

HIS SUFFERINGS AND ENDUEANCE. 103

full half an hour in finding a place to cross, by which time the Mullah had reached the hills and was making his way up. Seeing this, the six troopers dismounted and followed him.

'' The Mullah continued to scale the mountain side till he could ascend no further ; moreover, the path he had come was so narrow that only one person could move up at a time, and it was also almost perpendicular. Fortunately the rocks sheltered him from the balls of the pur- suers, whose advance he checked by throwing down masses of stone whenever they attempted it. Thus passed that dreadful day, in which the Mullah's sufferings from thirst were intense; ' but, after all,' said he, ' I consoled myself with the reflection that it was no worse than what we voluntarily submit to during the Ramzan festival, and I knew that my pursuers must be equally distressed, as there was no water within many miles of the place.' The troopers repeatedly attempted to ascend, but, as was afterwards learned, one man's skull was fractured, and the arm of another broken, by the boulders of rock poured down upon them whenever tliey made the attempt, and the Mullah had abundance of such ammunition.

104 UNHOPED-FOR DELIVERANCE.

At length the evening closed in, and to his great joy he saw the troopers descend the rocks, and mount their horses, which some of them did with difficulty, and one he perceived required a horseman on either side to support him. Then the Mullah returned thanks to God for his almost unhoped-for deliverance from great peril, and his pious ejaculation of Al-humd-O'lillah was no doubt uttered in the ftdlest sincerity. By that time it was pitch dark, and to descend without light to guide his stej^s would have been almost certain destruc- tion, as the chances were he would have fallen down a precij)ice and been dashed to pieces; so he patiently waited till the moon rose, and then retraced his steps, and luckily before morn- ing discovered a cattle track into the hills ; this he followed for a great distance, and at length to his joy fell in with some of the Murree tribe, when almost exhausted, for food had not j)assed his lips for eight-and-forty hours. Mullah Ma- homed informed me that he had never parted with the stick which had so effectually served him in a moment of imminent peril."

''That is a capital story," said I, ''Hukeem Sahib ; and now it will not be out of place to

ANECDOTE OF A RAJAH. 105

relate in return my own anecdote regarding tlie Eajah of Wunpurty, so here goes : —

''A few miles from Km'nool, within the Hyderabad frontier, stands the town of Wun- pm-ty, the capital of a little territory, whose prince is tributary to His Highness the Nizam. The Rajah is an extraordinary man ; he speaks and writes ten languages, including English, of which he has a fair knowledge, and is very partial to our countrymen, always receiving English travellers on their way through his country with much hospitality. During the late disturbances he has rendered us good ser- vice in maintaining the peace of the country, which he was the better enabled to do by having a small body of well-disciplined horse, foot, and artillery under his command. The infantry, if I remember right, were mostly Seiks, and fine stout fellows they were. The Eajah was very proud of his troops, which were clothed, armed, and disciplined just as well as those of the contingent. They, too, had the highest confidence in their chief, who had re- peatedly led them to victory in encounters with the Rohillas and other predatory bands tliat infest the Hyderabad territory.

106 ANECDOTE OF A RAJAH.

'' The Wunpurty country was productive and well governed by its chief, who had not only erected bungalows for travellers at every stage, but also established free dispensaries in several of the large towns under well trained native doctors, with every kind of medicine at command. In short, the Rajah is a very superior man, and it is only to be regretted that his expenditure in early life, though he is still a young man, was beyond what he could afford ; for it placed him in the hands of the Arab money-lenders at Hydera- bad, whose cent, per cent, exactions soon bring ruin on those who have the misfortune to fall into their hands, as was the case with my friend the Rajah, who being indebted in a large sum to a powerful Arab Jemadar at Hy- derabad, that worthy endeavom-ed to get him into his clutches. This, however, could not have been but for the treachery of Rajah Ram Buksh, the then Peshkar to the Nizam, who, for a consideration, invited the Rajah to Hy- derabad, and when there gave him up to his creditor, who refused to release him without liquidation of the debt, with most usurious in- terest, or a part of the same, and a fresh bond for the balance. As the Rajah was not, how-

ANECDOTE OF A KAJAH. 107

ever, disposed to submit to sucli exaction, lie positively refused, and the result was that the Jemadar confined him in his own house, a large building with a court-yard and guard- house near the gate, over which was an Arab sentry, with a matchlock and several of his brethren at hand. Apart from the annoyance of such confinement, the Rajah was treated very well, and he had the liberty of walking in the court-yard, the gate of which gave upon the street, and was by day always open.

" One morning he was thus walking up and down the yard, when a horsekeeper, leading a very fine Arab horse, passed down the street. The Rajah had previously looked at horses thus passing, and been in the habit of convers- ing with the horsekeepers, and with the Arab sentry; so it occasioned no surprise when he spoke to the man, asking to whom the horse belonged, his age, and so on, as he stood in the gateway. He took up one of tlie horse's feet, felt his legs, looked into his mouth, and did all that a regular horse-fancier would do ; at length he told the horsekeeper to take off the cloth, which having done, the Rajah, to the astonish- ment of the sentry, vaulted on to the horse's

108 THE rajah's escape.

back and was off like the wind. The sentry's matchlock was standing against the wall, but be- fore he was prepared to fire, the Rajah was round the corner and out of sight; though the poor horsekeeper, who was one of his own faithful servants, and had brought the horse to further his master's escape, was cut down on the spot. The plan for the Rajah's escape was cleverly- devised and boldly carried out ; ten horses were posted between Hyderabad and Wun- purty, so that the Sowars who were sent in pursuit had not a chance of capturing him, and the Rajah was thus enabled to make fa- vourable terms with his creditor."

" Those Arabs are indeed sad extortioners, I have heard," said the Hukeem, " but it is only, I believe, at Hyderabad that they exercise the calling of money-lender, and I was not aware of their doing so even there until I heard it from Colonel Sutherland, who was long in command of the Nizam's Cavalry Division of 5000 horse, and consequently well acquainted with the customs of the country. Ah, that was indeed a fine Sirdar," continued the Hukeem, ' ' and his equal I never saw, either with sword or spear ; such a horseman too that the most

'sword pkactice. 109

skilful Mogul had no chance with him, and by constant practice his chargers were so highly trained, that he could longe them in the small- est possible space. I am myself a pretty good swordsman, and have practised cutting at a mud wall as much as most men, but I could not cut anything like as deep as Sutherland Sahib, who used the drawing cut as we do, with a stiff wrist, not in the European fasliion." ''Yes," I replied, ''and his expertness with the S23ear was perfectly astonishing, for he never failed to extract the tent-pin when he practised that exercise, and it is a feat that many of your best spearmen fail to accomplish." " He was indeed," responded the Hukeem, " a fine soldier ; and you must not be vexed at my saying it, but I do not think much of the skill of your Lancers in general, though he was an exception certainly, for I once saw him pitted against some of the finest BircJiee Wallahs at Jhodepoor, and not one of them could touch him. His man- ner too of using the spear when attacked from the rear was peculiarly dexterous, for he turned well round to the left, and, holding the point of his spear low, met the assailant's spear with a slight turn of the wrist, which at once threw up

110 SPEAK EXEECISE.

the point, wliilst his own spear hit his assail- ant in the breast ; and this he did repeatedly." '' That is all very fine, Hiikeem Sahib," said I, " but you are wrong in your estimate of English Lancers, for there was a trial of skill a few years ago at Bombay between some men of the 1st Bombay Lancers trained like the Euro- pean Lancers, and some of the Nizam's Irregular Cavalry, and the latter were beaten in every en- counter." " Well," said the Hukeem, '^ you will adhere to your opinion, but I shall stick to mine." The Hukeem was himself a fine rider and a capital judge of a horse, for though nominally a doctor, he was in reality a gallant soldier, who in early life had seen much rough service in Rajahpootana. " On one occasion," said he, " I was sent with one hundred horse after a desperate villain who had been burning, slay- ing, and plundering, and had got clear off with his booty. The robbers had a considerable start ahead of us, but I pushed on with my party as rapidly as possible, and, after a long pursuit, Ave on the evening of the third day learned at a village where we halted for the night that the enemy were bivouacked about three miles ahead, and that both men and

PUESUIT OF ROBBERS. Ill

horses were completely worn out by tlie rapid- ity of their march. The same too might be said of my own party, for only fifteen men were with me, the remainder having dropped behind through sheer inabiUty to keep up. The robbers haying committed shocking atrocities in passing through the village, its inhabitants were ready enough to assist us, and I obtained the most exact information regarding the place where the villains were halted near a large tank. My Sowars, though few in number, were all tried soldiers, well armed and well mounted; but the robbers being upwards of two hundred strong, the disparity in numbers was two great for me to attack them with any hope of success. In my party I had an old Duffadar, who had seen much service in the cavahy of Ameer Khan, and calling him up I asked his advice. ' Hukeem Sahib,' said he, ' wait till the second watch of the night ; by that time our men and horses will be somewhat refreshed, and some Sowars in the rear will have come up. Give every horse a small bit of opium just before avc start ; that will for the time put new life into them, as it acts like the brandy that the SaJdh Logue* * English geutleiueu.

112 A NIGHT ATTACK.

are so fond of. Let us fall on them when they are sleeping and put them to the sword, for every one is a murderer and robber deserving of death. See the atrocities they committed here only a few hours ago ! Attack them we must, or our faces will be blackened for ever ; our numbers are too few to stand upon punctilio, and if we delay the attack they will be be- yond our reach and in the hills to-morrow.' Thus spoke the old Duffadar, and although strongly averse to slaying sleeping men, I could not but concur in the advice that he gave ; and having been joined by ten or twelve Sowars, we marched at midnight under the guidance of some of the villagers, who joined us in the desire of taking their revenge and sharing in the booty recoverable from the robbers. The night was pitch-dark, and the distance greater than we had been told ; but we came in sight of their fires about two in the morning, and were soon amongst them. I had strictly enjoined silence, and was well obeyed ; but just as we were approaching the foe, one of our horses neighed, and this aroused a drowsy sentinel, who shouted Kone-Hai, Who is there ? A spear was through him in a moment, and

SLAUGHTER OF THE ROBBERS. 113

then the work of death commenced. The rob- bers, to the number of full two hmidred, were lying about on the ground, for the most part seemingly worn out with fatigue, and rolled up in their Cumblies and Ruzzaies,* for the weather was bitter cold. Their tattoes or ponies were picketed near the owners, and some few had good horses, and many camels had been collected in their foray. The more watchful few had been alarmed by the sentry's shout, and were soon upon their feet, with sword in hand ; but the majority were still asleep, and thus were speared by my Sowars, or had their brains dashed out unresistingly by the clubs of the villagers. The moon arose just as the murderous leader of the band, with a few stout followers, for a few moments attempted resist- ance ere he fled, but a fortunate shot from my pistol closed his career of blood and rapine ; then those of his followers who could do so, dashed into and sought concealment amid the Jowary fields. Therein they found good shel- ter for the moment, but their hills were a dozen miles distant, and few of them reached their homes, as the villagers almost to a man turned

* Blankets and wadded count crpaues. VOL. II. 8

114 DISTRIBUTION OF BOOTY.

out to kill or capture those who in their pas- sage through the country had so cruelly ill- treated the people, whom they had slain in cold blood, besides subjecting many to torture, with other fearful outrages.

^'When daylight appeared, upwards of seven- ty bodies la}^ stark upon the field, and a vast quantity of loot or booty of all kinds. The waistbands of the dead were first submitted to search, and these were found to contain a great number of female ornaments, many of the nose and earrings being still affixed in the severed members, which had been seemingly cut off, as the quickest mode of appropriating the orna- ments. It was indeed a sickening sight. Having collected the dead, they were thrown into a pit, which was at once filled up. The camels were laden with the more valuable booty, and taken with the horses to the Rajah, who was delighted with our success, ordered an auction of the cap- tured proj^erty, unless claimed and the owner- ship substantiated within a certain number of days, and a division made amongst the captors, after deducting a ' lion's share ' on account of His Highness, and an ample slice for myself"

THE nUKEEM AT HALLA. 115

'' Shah bash* Hukeem Sahib, " said I, ''that is, indeed, an anecdote worth hearing."

The Hukeem was certainly a very agreeable person, and I was extremely sorry when he quitted London for Bombay, in charge of the Meer's suite and heavy baggage via South- ampton, His Highness following by the route of Trieste. We met ao-ain at Bombay and Kurrachee, but as the Meer had charged me on no account to speak of his affairs to the Hukeem, whom he suspected of treachery, in spite of all I could say to the contrary, there was an estrangement between us that caused me much pain, for I had a great regard for him. On our leaving Km^achee he remained behind on a plea of sickness, and he had long been suf- fering from disease of the kidneys ; but he had more than once told me that he did not like to trust himself in the Meer's power. The Hu- keem, after a time, came up to Halla, a largo town just without the frontier ; and there he re- mained, till the Meer, finding that he would not come to Khyrpoor of his own accord, made a representation to the British authorities to the effect that the Hukeem had robbed him, * Bravo!

116 CONFINEMENT OF THE HUKEEM.

and requesting that he might be given up in accordance with the engagements subsisting between the two Governments. The poor Hukeem, to my great sorrow, was sent to Khyr- poor under a guard of horse, and placed in con- finement in the fort of Dejee, where he was detained for many months without any investi- gation of the case, though the authority who gave him up, I was told, wrote expressing a hope that the Hukeem would have a fair trial ; but since my departure I have heard that an investigation has taken place, and that nothing could be proved against him. Nevertheless his release did not follow, why or wherefore I cannot say ; but such was the fact, and I con- sider that the public functionary who thus surrendered a British subject, for such the Hukeem was, to a native power, ought to have ascertained that justice was done in the case by a prompt investigation, and his immediate release if the charges against him could not be substantiated. As it was, however, the Hukeem' s most bitter enemies were all-power- ful to injure him. Hote Singh, the Mooktyar Kar, or Prime Minister, he looked upon and treated as a low, cheating Bunyali ; and Syed

SYED JAFFIER ALI SHAH. 117

Jaffier Ali Shah, the Meer's hereditary con- scieuce-keeper, he considered both a humbug and a barbarian, and treated him accord- ingly. So the influence of these two men was of course strongly employed to the Hu- keem's prejudice.

CHAPTER IV.

The Village of Dejee — The Meer's family — Their Primitive Style of Living — The Meer's Bungalow at Dejee — His Occupation during the Day — Training Hawks — Simplicity of the Court — A Prince's Breakfast — Houses of the Ameers — The Smaller Houses — Venti- lators— Household Utensils — Caussee — The Ali Surkars — The Post Office — A Voracious Calf — APleet of Invalids — Stolen Watch — Excessive Heat — Birth of an Heir — Grand Entertainment.

Beneath tlie fort of Dejee lies the village of tliat name, a very poor place, without trade or manufacture, but the abiding-place of Meer Ali Moorad's mother and three of His Highness' wives, as also of the families of his two elder sons. The Meer occasionally remains here for a week, but rarely a longer period, as it would interfere with his field sports. During his stay he generally pays a morning visit to his mother, and the same to two of his ladies, but the third he has never seen since the day after his marriage. The interior of a Ma- homedan prince's domestic establishment is ge-

THE MEEr's style OF LmNG. 119

nerally so hermetically sealed that nothing can be known of it ; but I derived a good deal of information from Mrs Gholaum, the Euro- pean woman before mentioned, who had access to all the Meer's ladies and his daugh- ters, and speaks highly of their kindness to herself and childi'en, as far as their means permitted. The mother of the elder princes and tlieir sisters was, however, but scantily provided for, considering the handsome in- come allowed to tlie mother of the younger princes ; but the style of living and economy of the whole was exceedingly primitive, and maintained at trifling cost, as, though their retainers were numerous, they were paid principally in kind.

Meer Ali Moorad's bungalow at Dejee is a very handsome house, somewhat on the plan of the old residence at Khyrpoor, but on a larger scale. The bungalow has been built for some years, but is still in good repair, if I except a few broken panes in the windows. The principal apartment is a very fine room in the form of a cross, GO feet by 50, the walls thirty feet high, and of great thickness, with fourteen smaller apart-

120 BUNGALOW AT DEJEE.

ments at tlie corners and ends of tlie build- ing. The bungalow contains but little fur- niture, though that little was once on a time extremely handsome. The chairs have all vanished, but one or two large couches still remain ; though the rich crimson satin damask wherewith they were covered has been ripped off, doubtless to make into jackets, by some of the Meer's domestics. His Highness, during his brief visits, never occupies the house ; but passes his days in a Landee in front, and sleeps in a small tent close to the building, in which his followers are accommodated. The Meer is supposed to have a superstitious dread of sleeping in a house, lest of its falling, in consequence of his father, Meer Sohrab, having been killed by a fall from a window. The walls of the several apartments are painted in fresco, in a great variety of patterns, and the ceil- ings the same, but the central part of that of the " Detvan-i-Aimij^ or " Hall of Audience," represents purple enamel ; this colour (2^117'- imra) is peculiarly fine in Sindh, and, with the blue meeua, is said to have been im- ported from Persia by one of the Ameers,

THE MEER's garden. 121

who was taken there as a hostage by Nadir Shah. The entire house is surrounded by an open veranda, twelve feet wide, on arches, and is undoubtedly a very cool dwelling in the hottest season, more especially with the appliances of Thermantedotes, Punkas, and Tatties; but the hosts of musquitoes, conse- quent on the luxuriant vegetation close up to the house, render it quite unbearable.

The building stands in the midst of a garden of, I should say, twenty acres, enclosed with a high Avail, well stocked with fine fruit- trees, mangoes, orange, and mulberry, &c., and numerous wells are constantly at work, as are a host of gardeners ; but their labours are much impaired by a sounder of hog, half-bred between English sows, that the Resident gave His Highness, and wild boars brought in from the jungle, whose progeny inherit so much of the paternal ferocity, that they charge any one who incautiously invades their haunts. I should imagine that these gentry must be very indifferent garden- ers, and the professional horticulturist, whom we brought round from Bombay, a gardener supplied from the Horticultural Society of

12^ INCONVENIENCES OF DEJEE.

that Presidency, was so much disgusted at the state of affairs at Dejee that he at once begged permission to retire from the Meer's service. I cannot say that I feel much sm^- prised at this, as he could not induce His Highness to remove his piggery. I at first was disposed to house myself at Dejee dur- ing the hot season, but the musquitoes de- terred me ; and moreover the want of a re- gular post was a serious objection, both as regards the receipt and despatch of letters, which to me was of the first importance. Besides, too, horses were not always procur- able, of which I had a specimen on the morning we first went to Dejee, as I had the greatest difficulty in getting one from the Cotwal of Khyrpoor, a low Sindhee, who was deaf to sundry polite messages that I sent, and sub- sequently to threats of complaint to the Meer, till it was suggested to me by my factotum Ramsan that such was beneath me, that I should order up the disobedient of- ficial to my quarters and say, ''If you do n't provide a horse I will give you a drubbing ! " I did so, and the effect was magical, thus clearly proving the correctness of my adviser's

THE meer's occupations. 123

judgment ; the said Ramzan quoting poetry in support of his opinion as follows : — ^' Sindee Saut — With a Sindhec," ^' PhyleyLaut — Kick him first," '' Peechee Bat — Order him afterwards." Monstrous as this must ajopear, it is no un- common thing for even official personages at native courts to receive a drubbing ; the pre- sent Mooktyar Kar to His Highness Meer AH Moorad '' has eaten the slipper " on two occa- sions, and I have no doubt he Avell deserved it ! AVhen at Dejce the Meer goes out with his retinue and shoots till nine or ten o'clock, then returns to breakfast ; after which he holds a durbar in tlie landcij, which having been well sprinkled with water to lay the dust, a large Sutrunjee, or cotton carpet, is spread, a charpoy Avith a couple of cushions to give it a tlu'one-like appearance being placed at the upper end ; on this the Meer takes post, his courtiers squat on the carpet, the more favoured near His Highness, those held in less honour at a distance. A petition or two is perhaps presented ; if so, the Meer skims his eye over half-a-dozen lines, tells the party that it shall be afterwards looked to, and shoves it under

124 THE SHAHBAZ.

the cushion at his back. The musicians are ordered to play and sing, after which His Highness retires to take his siesta, and all the attendants and others go to sleep too, for no noise is j^ermitted duiing the slumbers of the sovereign. After the Meer rises, he bathes and dresses, then passes the time in firing at a mark, or has some dogs brought for inspection, or has some of the young hawks tried at partridges or crows, which are kept in readiness for such purposes.

The Meer perfectly understands all relating to sporting matters, and especially the training of hawks, of which he is intensely fond, and spares no expense in obtaining the finest birds from Central Asia. 'Wlien in London he was so struck with a Shahbaz, or King of the Falcons, at the Zoological Gardens, that he paid Landseer fifty guineas for a picture of the bii^d, and a splendid pictm-e it was. From His Highness I learned that young hawks, when fully fledged, should be placed in a light room, well defended from cats. They should be fed fi'om the hand to a peculiar sound, getting a good meal, morning and evening, of goat's flesh, but best of all is the flesh of

TRAINING HAWKS. 125

kittens.* The falconers sliould cultivate the affection of the young birds, giving them water to wash in, and boughs to perch on. Then their education is commenced by breaking them to the hood. This is done by stitching the eyelids of the bird together, and so keeping them for a week. If she sulks and refuses food, her toes are pinched, and when she pecks, a bit of raw flesh is popped into her beak. When the hawk will sit quietly on the fist, the threads are loosened to give her a little light, and the hood is put on. The threads are next cut, so as to pull gradually from the eyelids. She is then placed on the fist and taught to sit quiet whilst the hood is put on or removed. If a hawk be untractable she is tamed by what is called Shiib-he?/dari, that is, depriving her of sleep by placing lights about her and disturbing her whenever she seems inclined to sleep. The most intractable bird is soon tamed by this method. The hawk's food is increased as she becomes tractable. The falconer should always address his bird in coaxing tones, and with judicious management she will soon allow herself to be carried about * Burton.

126 THE FIRST BAULI.

the bazaar on the fist. After the old hood has been gradually removed, the hawk is placed unhooded on her perch m the dark. To bring her to the fist the falconer places her on the perch unhooded, and tempts her to light on his fist by a bit of raw flesh. AVhen the hawk will come from a distance of 40 or 50 yards, the falconer prepares a lure, generally a dead bird, or the dried wings of a bird tied together. Under the pinion of the lure some raw flesh is placed, so that the hawk fancies it is part of the lure. After this the lure is thrown upon the ground and the hawk cast off ; the falconer then calls to her, and his voice being recognized by the hawk, she swoops down upon the lure, circling round the falconer, as he shifts his position by pulling the string. The falconer then approaches her gently, addressesher in a coaxing tone, and lays hold of and rewards her with a full meal. The next step in her education is called the first hauli. For this the falconer takes a live partridge or crow, with its beak broken off, and throws it on the ground, and when the hawk swoops at it he jerks it away ; this makes the hawk savage. This is fol- lowed by throwing up a bii'd of the same species

CHASING THE GAZELLE. 127

with its eyes sewn up ; and if the hawk strike it clown, she is allowed to gorge her prey. The second haiiU is a bird with open eyes, but its wings cut, which is cast into the air at a distance. The third hauU is a bird which has been somewhat weakened by confinement. The fourth is a bird in full strength.* The exhibitions that I saw at Dejee were the first bauli only, but the Meer showed by his coun- tenance in explaining the practice how fully he understood and entered into the spirit of the sport. '' Ah," said he, '' you should see my ShaJibaz flown at an Ohara or Gazelle, my horsemen gradually closing in around her, till at length the game starts, the Bhalibaz is thrown up in the direction of the Ohara as it passes, and a brace of fleet greyhounds are slipt in pursuit; but the antelope soon leaves them behind, for so speedily does she fly, that her feet twinkle in the distance like flashes of lightning. However the speed of the Shahhaz outstrips her ; now she swoops upon her back, deeply scoring it at every stroke of her claws, — anon descending on the head of the Gazelle, she tries to tear out its

* Burton,

128 SIMPLICITY OF THE COURT.

eyes witli her cruel talons. Fear, as much as fatigue, deprives the animal of strength and breath; at length it staggers and falls, but rises again, though with signs of distress ; but by this time the fierce greyhounds have come up, though ere they can seize their panting prey the Shahhas has brought it to the ground, and probably torn its lovely eyes out. Wah," exclaims the Meer, '' that is a chase worth seeing."

The Ameers of Khyrpoor always prided themselves on the simplicity of their habits, and Meer AH Moorad adheres to the practices of his forefathers, as do his younger sons. Reading or study of any kind seems alto- gether out of the question mth them. Such is the taste of these princes, which certainly differs widely from our own ; but it is unfair to judge of a native prince quite in a primitive state by the standard of those at the highest pitch of civilization. As a specimen of their mode of life I shall mention that I was calling one morning on the Meer's youngest son, when his elder brother Meer Shah Nowaz came in from hunting, and after inquiring regarding his brother's health, he being laid up with a

A prince's breakfast. 129

large abscess; some words passed in Sindhi, when a tall Belooch, of savage aspect and near- ly naked, entered the apartment with an iron weapon, some five feet in length, presented towards the heir-apparent, for whom I might have felt alarm but for the tranquil air of both brothers and several armed attendants. The mid- dle part of the weapon was, I then saw, cover- ed with a very greasy cloth, which the young Meer unrolled, disclosing to view sundry roasted ^^artridges, and other cawaubs, which sent forth a savour}'- odour. His Highness at once seized a partridge, slipped it off the sj^it, and commenced tearing off the flesh and de- vouring it, without bread or salt. When finish- ed, he took a mouthful of water, squirted it forth on the floor, and seizing the filthy waist-cloth of his favourite henchman, a Sidi, used it as his serviette, winding up with an eructation loud almost as a pistol-shot, followed by the ejaculation, ^^ Al humd-o-UUa/i,^^ byway of grace after breakfast.

The houses of Meer Shah Nowaz and his brother, Meer Fyze Mahomed, are large ram- bling buildings, but seemingly well suited to their wants and the number of their retainers.

VOL. II, 9

130

HOUSES IN SINDH.

Buildings in Sindh are generally of unburned brick, as in Eg}7pt. The larger ones are mostly arched, from the difficulty of procur- ing timber sufficiently large for beams. The door-ways too are arched, and the arches and domes appear to be well-constructed and very durable, judging from the numerous an- cient tombs in the vicinity of Sukkur and Roree. The smaller dwelling-houses are all flat-roofed, having projecting eaves, two or three feet in width, of light material, as a pro- tection against sun and rain. Ventilation is much attended to in all classes of dwellings. The smaller houses have generally openings on the roof for that purpose, admitting both light and air ; these are shaped thus, and are called '' Bad Gir,^^ literally, " wind catchers."

The larger houses — I refer to those of the Ameers — have arched apertures over all the

HOUSES OF THE AMEERS. 131

doors in either story, which are filled with open work, in a great variety of tasteful patterns, excluding glare, and at the same time main- taining ventilation. Tlie ceilings are formed of light wood- work ; the pieces seldom exceed- ing twelve inches in length by three in width, placed in a vast variety of forms, according to the taste and fancy of the artificer ; and in the dwellings of the wealthy, ornamented with painting and gilding. The principal reception- room, or Dewcm-i-Aiwi, is either entirely open on one side or has a screen of open wood- work, con- sisting of small pieces, set in a variety of fanci- ful patterns. The walls are generally of great thickness, for the purpose of resisting the heat, and hollow spaces are left in all of them, wherein to place household utensils, which are always of the commonest description. Even the sovereign himself is in this respect little better off than many of his people. When the Khyrpoor Residency was abolished, the Meer purchased the Resident's fm^niture, table ap- pliances, &c., but these have nearly all dis- appeared, for want of some one to look after the property ; some battered dishes, tliat once were plated, arc still in use, but a handsome

132 TABLE EQUIPAGE.

set of silver-handled knives have nearly all dis- appeared, having been given by His Highness to falconers, or others, when in a liberal mood. The Sindhees have a small receptacle for a knife in their sword scabbards, and observing one day a Khorassan Sowar with what appeared to be a silver-mounted dessert knife, I inquired how he came by it, and was told it was a present from the Meer, and that he valued it highly both for the excellence of the blade and the beauty of the handle, winding up his panegyric with loJmt acha, oostacl Jca Jcam hy. "It is very fine. It is the work of a master.'' One evening my pillao was brought in a plated dish, and for want of any other vessel to con- tain water, the Meer's servants brought it in the cover of the dish itself. The only light I had in camp was a small iron lamp on a spike about two feet high, which was stuck in the ground and fed with mustard-seed oil, to the great annoyance of my olfactory nerves. This, however, was precisely similar to what the Meer had in his own tent.

The doors of the houses are of the very roughest make, in which streugtli alone seems to be the consideration of the artificer. The

SLEEPING APAETMENTS. 133

walls of the better houses even are but roughly plastered, with a coat of whitewash ; but they are chary of their whitewash in Sindh, and rarely employ it for outside decoration. The floors are of burnt brick, but more generally of clay, and some are merely covered with river sand, which during the hot weather, when watered tatties are in request, is kept constantly wet by the labours of a Bheesty, or water- carrier. The clay of Sindh makes excellent plaster, when mixed with a large quantity of finely-chopped grass, wdiich prevents its cracking when dry.

The upper rooms of houses are employed en- tirely as sleeping apartments, or for the Zimana, and have generally a terrace in front, on which both sexes sleep in the open air during the hot season. As my chum, Mr I- , and my- self slept on a lofty terrace, Avhich commanded all those around, — and I always rise at the first break of day, — I occasionally saw strange sights, but discretion says '•^ KhamooshP The houses of the Meers are painted outside in a variety of figures, the effect of which is pleasing, and the ancient buildings in Sindh are many of them cased in encaustic bricks

134 CAUSSEE WORK.

of rich and vivid colours and great variety of pattern. The best of these are now manu- factured at Halla, but are far inferior in beauty to those on the ancient tombs about Sukkur. I am indebted to a local work for the following account of this manufacture, which is called Caussee, and is used for making dishes and covers, basins, vases, &c. : —

'' These articles are manufactured in several parts of Sindh, but the best are procurable at Halla. The body of the tile is clay. Three kinds of glazes are used, colourless, green, and brown ; variety of colour is obtained in different ways ; on a bed of fine clay, laid on the sur- face to be glazed, metallic pigments, viz. those of manganese, cobalt, and copper, are traced in the figures wished to be represented, and over these the transparent glass, in the pulver- ised state, is placed. Thus ^^I'opared the tile is subjected to heat, when the body is con- verted into earthenware, the prepared fine clay in contact with it into white porcelain, the pigments into the figures, coloured purplish black, azure, and green, and the glaze into the transparent glass which forms the surface, and transmits to view the coloiu-ed figures. The

COLOURED TILES. 135

tile therefore i3resents these colours, — white, black, with purple tinge, azure, and green; when the green glaze is used on a dark ground, white clay is laid, over which the green glaze is put, and when fixed the tile presents a dark green ground with bright green figures. These tiles are in two colours. The brown glaze is used in the same way as the last, and gives the colours of dark brown and yellow. These comprise the colours commonly produced, the glazes are formed of the base of sand and litharge, six of the former to twenty of the latter, which is the transparent glaze. The green has added one and a half of oxide of copper, and the brown two and a half of Kiir- majee, which appears to be oxide of iron with a little cobalt mixed with it. The sand used for the glass is brought from Sehwan, the flint for the porcelain clay from Mount Anjar; the cobalt is called auria, the litharge Murdar Sing, and the substance called Kiirmajee, which gives colour to the brown glaze, is principally oxide of iron."

The entire household furniture of Khyrpoor can be comprised in a single word, ''the char- poy." The poorest individual possesses one or

136 HOUSEHOLD REQUISITES.

more of these useful articles, and tlie sovereign himself has nothing better, for neither table nor chair does His Highness possess. The common charpoy is made of the cheapest wood procm^able, the bottom being formed of the worst possible string, or rather twisted grass. The better description is made of wood neatly turned, with lacquered legs and a bottom of tape. A few charpoys and Sutrunjees or cotton carpets, some roughly-made boxes in which to keep wearing apparel, and some baskets of the Kana reed, with a few carpets and cushions, form the sum-total of a Sindhi gentleman's household conveniences.

The Meer and his sons live in a very patri- archal manner, and their retainers appear much attached to them, always observing that respect which is their Highness' due, though treated by the princes with the greatest familiarity. Of an evening, when at Dejee, a charpoy is placed on the shady side of the house, with a carpet in front of it. The young princes seat themselves on the former, with any of their relations who may be present, their attendants all squatting on the carpet, and joining in the conversation of their superiors without the least ceremony.

THE ALI SURICARS. 137

but at tlie same time witliout a shadow of dis- respect. The ladies of the family also pay and receive visits at about the same time, passing from garden to garden in covered camel litters, ' the curtains of which, being of scarlet cloth, have a very handsome effect. The Meer's wives and daughters, and those of his sons, never leave home to accompany His Highness, but he always has an establishment of ladies in his train. Three sisters, who are styled the '' Ali Surkars," have been for some years the principal favom-ites, but the elder one is said to have fallen into disgrace in consequence of some prejudicial rumours having reached the Meer during his absence in England. I was informed by Mrs Gholaum, who visited them frequently when at Khyrpoor, that neither of the three is particularly well looking, but they all appeared very good-natm^ed. The Meer, amongst his presents for these ladies, took out one or two rich silk dresses, which were the first articles of the kind that they had ever be- held, and on His Highness desiring to see the favourite Ali Surkar equipped therein, Mrs Gholaum was summoned to aiford aid and advice in the matter. Fortunately the dress

138 THE POST-OFFICE.

required little alteration, as the lady's figure was slight ; and as there were no critical eyes to detect a misfit, Mrs Gholaum's skill, both as modiste and femme de cliambre, remained un- questioned, and the Meer, I was told, expressed his approbation of her handivv^ork in flattering terms, though unaccompanied by what she ex- pected, and was, poor woman, at the time, very much in need of — namely, a few rupees ; but rupees at Khyrpoor have ever been a scarce commodity.

On first going to Sindh it was mentioned to me by Mr Hewett, then inspecting postmaster in the province, a very active and energetic officer, that it would be desirable to introduce reform in the Khyrpoor post-office, and on stating this to Meer Ali Moorad, he appeared to acquiesce; nevertheless my attempts to do so proved abortive, although my suggestions might have been carried out without any ad- ditional expense to His Highness, as all I wanted was to introduce official regularity. The practice was, and I dare say still is, for one of the Moonshees at the Kotwallee to per- form the duties of the post-office, receiving and despatching all letters for or from Khyrpoor.

POSTAL SYSTEM. 139

Letters for despatch, on being sent to the Kot- wallee, were placed in a box, which in the absence of the Moonshee was under charge of a Chokeydar. About 5 p. m. the letters were taken out by the Moonshee, tied together by a bit of string, without bag or envelope, and taken to the stable where the Dawk contract- or's horses were kept ; there the packet was placed upon a particular beam, as agreed on with the Dawk Sowar, who generally arrived about sunset, and who, whilst a fresh horse was being brouglit out, took down the packet, and, placing it in his wallet, galloped on to the Government post-office at Roree. It may readily be sup- posed that such a system was not a very secure one ; and I at any rate can answer for that, as on one occasion I jDOsted two letters for Bom- bay, one of which contained a hoondee, or native draft, for eight hundred rupees. On the following morning the Moonshee came to me, looking much alarmed, and on inquiry I found that he had on the preceding evening laid down the packet of letters on a bundle of grass in the stable yard, and forgetting it whilst he spoke to a friend, a hungry calf had seized upon and half eaten the packet, the re-

140 A VORACIOUS CALF.

mains of which he produced. On learning what had occurred I certainly was in a fury, and informed the Moonshee that I should get him dismissed from his situation. The poor fellow, however, assured me that he would procm^e me another hoondee from the Sahokar, within three days, in exchange for the half- masticated remnants that were retm-ned to him ; and as my ire subsided, I overlooked the offence, considering that the Meer was himself most of any one to blame for allowing such laxity of practice in all departments of his Government. The Moonshee, moreover, kept his word, and Sawun Mull, the Sahokar, very honourably sent me a fresh hoondee, so I was no loser by the accident. I was told, however, that it was not the first occurrence of the kind, and that on one occasion a packet containing a cashmere shawl was swallowed by the same devouring monster, not a vestige of the shawl, however, remaining in proof of the assertion. I confess, however, that /could hardly stvallow this, though the calf had the credit of having done so by the packet. The Dawk in Sindli travels faster than the generality of Dawks in India, but the deputy postmasters at stations are very

A FLEET OF INVALIDS. 141

careless in regard to the transmission of letters, occasionally forwarding those addressed to one station in an opposite direction. This occurred two or three times to myself, although I was well known to the postmaster and his subordinates.

Our solitude at Khyrpoor was rarely broken by visitors, but now and then a stray travel- ler popped in ; we also occasionally visited Sukkur for a few days, and on one of these visits saw a fleet of Punjaub boats on its way down the Indus. The boats were 180 in number, having on board about 1200 inva- lids. One poor fellow had lost both arms, and two hundred were said to have lost an arm or leg. The rest were mostly broken in health, from wounds and exposure. The ladies and children with the party were also very nu- merous. The boats extended nearly two miles in length, and seemed comfortably fitted up, and when in motion had a picturesque appear- ance on the water. We were fortunate in having a pleasant party in 'the traveller's bungalow in addition to ourselves; the others were a lawyer whom we had known at Bom- bay, and an officer commanding one of the Punjaub cavalry corps, who had served under

142 STOLEN WATCH.

Sir Charles Napier. I was, however, obliged to return to Khyrpoor, having received a sum- mons to that effect from the Meer. On the night before I left Sukkur we were visited by a gang of thieves, one of whom was in my room ; but being distm-bed by my calling out, he sneaked off, and, it would seem, visited my chum, who occupied the next apartment, and, putting his hand through a broken pane, car- ried off Mr I ^'s watch and chain. The

party then completely gutted the other side of the bungalow, even damaging more than they actually carried off. The moment the robbery was discovered the Kotwal was sent for, and a tracker laid upon the trail ; his skill, however, was of no avail, and it seemed to be the prevailing opinion that the thieves had gone off in a steamer which left Sukkur the same morning ; at any rate, the stolen property was never recovered.

Shortly after my arrival next morning at Khyrpoor, a horseman came in from Dejee, bringing a letter from Meer Fyze Mahomed, an- nouncing the birth of a son on the preceding day, and inviting me to the festivities conse- quent on the happy event. I gladly accepted the

EXCESSIVE HEAT. 143

invitation, and, accompanied by Mr Feeney, started for Dejee by moonlight. We arrived there just after sunrise, and found Meer Fyze Mahomed and his elder brother about to take their morning tea, a custom which they had acquired from European friends, and were very partial to. Having offered my congratulations on the birth of his son, and swallowed a cup of tea and a biscuit, I took possession of a charpoy, and enjoyed a comfortable sleep for a couple of hours, then washed and dressed in Sindh cos- tume, viz. apyran or blouse of thin muslin, enor- mously wide paejamas or continuations, and an embroidered skull cap ; such being a very suit- able dress for the climate during the hot season. Indeed, I never felt heat equal to that of Suk- kur in the month of May, a kind of dry burn- ing heat like the heat of fever, without pro- ducing perspiration or causing excessive thirst ; and the town being built on rocks, which re- tain the heat, the atmosphere never cools either by night or day for months together. Khyr- poor is, however, much cooler than Sukkur, and especially at night.

Having finished my toilet, my presence was re- quested in the hall of audience, wliere I found as-

144 DANCE OF EUNUCHS.

sembled a number of guests, relatives, and friends of the two princes, who invited me to take a seat on their charpoy, in front of which a long Per- sian carpet was spread, on either side whereof the guests were squatted, leaving the centre clear for the dancers. A taefa^ or set, tlien came for- ward, but the exhibition was indijfferent, and the performers far from good-looking. A second set followed suit, and they were very superior to the first. After the nautches had finished, I heard a great deal of laughter, and Meer Shah Nowaz, pointing outside, requested me to look at the bevy of beauties there. These were a party of eunuchs dressed as women, and more disgusting-iooking bipeds I never beheld. The princes and their guests being by that time quite ready for breakfast, orders were given to bring it ; and a very excellent breakfast we had, consisting of all kinds of Jcawahs of black partridge, teal, and wild duck, florilien and steaks of the para, with a variety of fish and some very excellent pillaos, both sweet and savoury. As my knife, fork, and spoon al- ways accompanied the toilet appliances in my carpet-bag, I made a very comfortable meal, after which every one retired to take a siesta.

GKAND ENTERTAINMENT. 145

which is the custom of the country ; in fact, from twelve till two o'clock daily all Sindh may be assumed to be asleep. In the evening we took a short ride, and when night closed in, the court-yard, after being sprinkled to lay the dust, was spread with carpets and well lighted, and a very fine nautch we had, the best artistes from Roree and Khyrpoor being collected for the purpose.

Amongst the guests was the Mooktyar Kar, Hote Singh, who was invited from policy, not affection, I imagine, as his ar- rogance has rendered him the pet aversion of both princes : he has, however, so much influence over Meer Ali Moorad, from being His Highness' Chancellor of the Exchequer, that I suppose they considered it wise to pro- pitiate him by an invitation. Before the great man's arrival, too, only inferior performers had been brought forward, but when Hote Singh came, the prima donna and her set were im- mediately called for, and for four hours the pace never slackened. Meer Fyze Mahomed then, I suppose, began to grow sleepy, as ho gave the signal for retreat, and his hospitalities concluded with an excellent supper, after which

VOL. n. 10

146 SOBRIETY OF THE AMEERS.

I threw myself on a cliarpoy, well rolled up in double ruzzaie, or wadded coverlet, with my saddle-cloth under my head, and was asleep in five minutes. The Meer's sons are all very temperate, as, indeed, is His High- ness; but those who knew him in early life declare that he was then addicted to the wine cup, and indulged somewhat too freely in the enticing liquors forbidden by the Koran. I certainly have known the Meer take wine, but never to excess ; and the best possible proofs that he never has done so are to be found in the extraordinary steadiness of his hand as a marksman, and the excellent health that his appearance betokens. In fact, I should say that Meer Ali Moorad's life is a better one than that of either of his sons. Dr Burnes declares that the Ameers of Hyderabad never indulged in wine or intoxicating drugs. This, however, certainly does not extend to Khyr- poor, where Meer Roostum's failing is a noto- rious fact that no one hesitates to admit.

CHAPTER V.

Antelope Hunting — Bad Government — Eilling the Meerwah — Hin- doo Ladies Bathing — Night Shooting — Killing a Tiger with an Ar- row— Marriage Procession — Bursting of the KuUoree — Ruinous Walls — Habits of Meer Ali Moorad — Hote Singh — Religion of the Sindhians — Shiahs and Soonies — Evening Prayer — The Bam- zan Festival — Pasting Unfashionable at Khyrpoor — Tiger Shot — Khoodbah — Buckrecd Pestival.

On the morning after the entertainment Meer Shah Nowaz was obliged to go out to his father's camp, much to his own disinclination ; but Meer Fyze Mahomed was allowed to remain at home, to attend, I suppose, to the wants of his newly-born son, the presumptive heir to His Highness. The Meer, on his grand hunting excursions, always insists on the attendance of his sons, much to the annoyance of the two elder princes, who are rarely allowed to fire at hog, and thus find little amusement in being in attendance on their father; but Meer Jehan Mahomed is an exception, as I have seen him

10 *

148 MEEK SHAH NOWAZ.

occasionally take shots from a Koodnee,* but he is the favourite. His eldest son, upon one oc- casion, exj)ressing a wish to remain behind, the Meer said, " I consider those only to be my sons who accompany me to the chase." Meer Shah Nowaz has repeatedly told me how dis- tasteful it is to himself to be thus dragged about in the jungles, when he would prefer remaining at home with his family, and enjoy- ing himself with books; for, unlike the generality of his race, he is fond of study, and has really some taste for drawing. These tastes, however, can only be gratified now and then ; and as his father had started two days previously for the Narra, where he expected great sport with an- telope, which abound in that quarter, it behoved him to push on, more especially as the Meer's youngest son, Meer Khan Mahomed, was then an invalid at Khyrpoor. Meer Shah Nowaz was very anxious that I should accompany him, but the weather was getting warm, and I felt unwilling needlessly to expose myself to the burning sun of Sindh at the commencement of the hot season, as the tent at my disposal was exceedingly small, and afi'orded little better

* A shooting lodge.

THE MEER'S passion FOR SPORT. 149

shelter from the sun than a large umbrella. The Meer's ways, toOj are very peculiar, as he will never allow his people to know where he means to halt for breakfast, and his intended sleeping- place is even kept a more profound secret. After his cavalcade has proceeded two or thi^ee miles, he makes up his mind where he will breakfast, and a Sowar is sent back with orders to Jooma, the Jemadar of cooks, who there- upon mounts his horse, and proceeds with his establishment on camels, mules, and yaboos, to the appointed place, which is always a well, with good shelter about it. Then by this time his morning's sport is over, breakfast is in readiness in a Landee, with carpets spread, and such rude accommodation as His Highness looks for. In this manner, day after day, and month after month, does the Meer not only waste his own time, and incur enormous ex- pense in the gratification of his absorbing pas- sion for sport, but equally wastes the time and means of his unwilling subjects, who are compelled to leave their agricultural pursuits often when their labours are most needed on their lands, without the smallest remuneration. Not only this, but the unfortunate culti-

150 PEOTECTION OF GAME.

vators are even proHbited from scaring away tlie wild hogs by their cries when they come to commit night ravages in their grain fields ; and, moreover, the Shikarees, falconers, and other followers of the Meer's camp, who gener- ally nmnber some hundred persons, quarter themselves on the neighbouring villages with- out paying for anything. How indeed can these hungry followers pay, when they rarely get paid in anything but promises for their own services !

Such is the system that still obtains in Meer All Moorad's territory, and which formerly ob- tained throughout the entire country, where villages were razed and districts depopulated in the vicinity of Shikargahs, because of disturb- ance to the game. This is no mere assertion, for it is on record that Meer Futteh Ali of Hy- derabad sacrificed revenue to the amount of between three and four lakhs of rupees annu- ally, by depopulating a most fertile tract of country, simply because it was a favourite resort of the hog-deer, Kotapacha ; and his youngest brother banished the inhabitants of an ancient village because the crowing of the cocks and grazing of the cattle disturbed the game on his

TYRANNY OF FOREST LAW. 151

brother's Jagheer. Bad as this appears, I think however that a farallel case might be found in Scotland.

Meer Ali Moorad is, I believe, naturally a humane and kind-hearted man, but His High- ness has no pardon for a poacher, and any one caught so offending is sure to be heavily punished, for he has been heard to say that he values the life of a hog more than that of a man ; not that he ever takes human life, though possessing the power to do so^ but an accused party can hardly expect fair play when he feels assured that the case is already prejudg- ed; and witnesses are never wanting to substan- tiate an-accusation, conviction on which will, they know, be agreeable to their sovereign, or any other high functionary. At the same time, it is very probable that the parties accused may be really guilty of the breach of Khyrpoor forest law charged against them, for a peaceful culti- vator must possess more than ordinary patience quietly to see a sounder of hog destroying his crop without taking a shot at the animals.

Both prince and peasant in Sindh are equally the creatures of impulse, and in hunting excur- sions all respect of persons is lost sight of in the

15^

ANTELOPE HUNTING.

excitement of the chase ; etiquette is thrown to the winds on these occasions, for all are equally sportsmen, and nothing but the game is thouglit of, be that game what it may. In Upper Sindh tigers are rarely seen on the left bank of the river, but in the Hyderabad country they were frequently met with, and many of the poor beaters were their victims in the grand battues. On his expedition to the Naira, the Meer was absent about twenty days, and, I was told, had fine sport, or rather committed great slaughter amongst the antelopes. These bat- tues are conducted in this wise : an enclosm^e sufficiently high to prevent the antelope escap- ing over it having been hedged in, to the extent of five or six miles, in the form of a triangle, open at the base, a great number of villagers are assembled, who beat the country for a considerable distance in the direction of the enclosure, into which the antelopes are driven in flocks. Horsemen then advance in extended order, shouting and driving all before them towards an opening at the smaller end of the enclosure, where the Meer is stationed in a Jcoodnee commanding the opening, when numbers are shot dovm in attempting to escape, and the rest are turned back by the fire of his

FILLING OF THE MEERWAH. 153

rifles, to be again chased to the front by the Sowars. In vain the antelopes attempt to leap the hedge, but finding that impossible, they at last become so alarmed that many fall from sheer fright beneath the hoofs of the Sowars' horses ; the body of the herd rush again and again towards the opening, where the royal butchery continues, till the enclosure is cleared of game by the animals which remain rushing out of the opening. During the twenty days that the Meer was absent on this excm-sion, he killed above twelve hundred antelopes, be- sides other large game, and an enormous quantity of floriken, bustard, black partridge, &c., were taken by the hawks. On the 15th of May, the Meerwah canal filled with water, much to the dissatisfaction of His Highness, as it interfered with his night shooting, for in the hot season the Meer shoots a great deal by night, as the afternoon sun of Sindh is too powerful even for the brains of a Belooch.

The filling of the ^leerwah, consequent on the rise of the Indus to its greatest height, is a season of much rejoicing to all classes at Khyr- poor, as the cultivators have an assurance therefrom that their crops will not fail for want

154 HINDOO LADIES BATHING.

of water, and the Bunyalis feel satisfied that their Tuccavie advances are safe. The inhabit- ants, and especially the Hindoos, are also enabled to bathe ad libitum, and both sexes avail themselves of the element in the most free-and-easy manner. The women repair to the Ghauts at the decline^ of day, in parties of eight or ten, and divest themselves of their apparel in full view of men-bathers, seem- ingly without a thought of the indecency of thus appearing in puris naturalibus. The Sind- hees are not, I should say, prone to the indulgence of frequent bathing ; at any rate, I am sure that the Mahomedan portion of the community are not so, as with some of the highest in rank even batliing is ''an event," and an event, moreover, of not very frequent occurrence. The Hindoo women and children, however, really do seem to enjoy themselves after the filling of the Meerwah, and resort to it in numbers every evening.

Meer Ali Moorad's night shooting is managed in this wise : the Shikarees discover where the hog and deer resort to drink, in parts of the Meer- wah which always contain a little water. Near these spots Jwodnecs are constructed to leeward

NIGHT SHOOTING. 155

of tlie water, as all wild animals have the sense of smell so delicate that unless the sportsman be to leewardj they would never approach within gunshot. If not in the vicinity of such places, His Highness has a pool of water made from a well near where the hog and deer abound ; and they soon find it out, and resort to it to quench their thirst when all around is di'ied up. Thus at such times His Highness is sure of sport at those places, for the hog will always go to wallow where he can find a spot convenient. But after the Meerwah is full, and water in abundance all over the country, the Meer's plan is to have grain placed for several nights for the animals to feed on ; and when they become acquainted with the spot, and resort there at night to feed, a Jcoodnee is erected, as His Highness then considers himself sure of sport. This building is sufficiently raised to be out of danger, and large enough to contain a charpoy. To this His Highness retires after his evening meal, being, it is said, sometimes accompanied by one of the All Surlcars, as three favourite Hureems, who are sisters, are styled. The Meer, when composing himself to his slumbers, has a string fastened to

156 METHOD OF DECOYING HOG-DEEE.

his toe or finger, which when game appears is pulled by a Shikaree outside, and he is instantly on the alert and fires at the animal. Some- times (according to Shikaree rumour) the lady takes a shot, and the Ali Surkars are said to be excellent markswomen. If the night be dark, a blazing fire is kept alight at some distance, so that any animals may be distinctly visible on passing before the flame.

The Meer in the rutting season sometimes stations himself just outside a Moohary, or jungle preserve, and applies a kind of call to his lips, the sound whereof resembles the cry of the female Para, or hog-deer, when wishing for her lord. All the males that hear the sound hasten in high excitement toward the spot whence it issued, perfectly unsuspicious and regardless of the danger that awaits them. In this manner the largest male Paras are killed; but I must confess that I consider the device as most poacher-lilve, and unworthy of a fair sportsman, and, generally speaking, the Meer is a very fair sportsman ; though no Ryot in his dominions labom'S more systematic- ally and unremittingly for his daily bread than does His Highness Meer Ali Moorad for

PECULIAR MODES OF HUNTING. 157

his daily pleasure, whicli he turns into toil, and that toil attended with most injurious con- sequences to his own reputation as a sovereign, and to the happiness and prosperity of his people.

Abulfuzul, writing on hunting, thus describes '' Ghuntaheera." '' This," says he, " is the name of another manner of hunting. A man takes in his hand a shield or basket, so as to cover a lamp ; then, with his other hand, he rings a little bell : the animals running towards the light and the noise, are shot with ar- rows by those who lie in cover. There is another way of assembling the game together, by a person's singing an incantation ; but His Majesty, considering both these methods to be nefarious, has ordered them to be dis- continued."

These modes of hunting were, however, surely less of the nature of poaching than the one just mentioned as practised by His High- ness Meer Ali Moorad.

The Shikarees of Sindh have a peculiar way of using the bow with a blunt arrow, which strikes the bird aimed at sideways, and brings it down with the blow. They have, however, very fine bows in Sindh,

158 A FORCIBLE CIRCUMCISION.

which, I believe, come from Mooltan ; and I remember a ^' mighty hmiter," a Mahomedan from that province, who entered the Meer's service whilst I was at Khyi^poor, and was reputed to have killed several tigers, single- handed, with bow and arrow. I do not recollect this man's name, but he was re- markably tall, and had but one eye; and his reputation as a hunter at once insured him a favourable reception from Meer Ali Moorad. It was said, however, that he left Mooltan somewhat suddenly, in consequence of an act of violence committed on a Hindoo of influence, who during the late insurrec- tion in India endeavoured to injure the Moslem with the British authorities, by bringing against him a false accusation of disloyalty; this he clearly and satisfactorily disproved, and then, causing some of his Sowars to bring his Hindoo accuser before him, he intimated that he must become a Mahomedan, and caused the necessary operation to be performed on the spot. I cannot answer for the truth of the anecdote, but it was fully believed at Khyrpoor.

The Hindoo subjects of Meer Ali Moorad

A MARRIAGE AT KHYRPOOR. 159

are probably the more respectable, as they certainly are the more wealthy, portion of the community at his capital, where some of the practices at marriages, betrothals, and the like, are different from any that I ever saw in India. On one occasion we were awakened about midnight by a marriage procession entering the city. The bride- groom was the son of one of the principal goldsmiths of Khyrpoor, but his bride was fvom a town at some distance. These pro- cessions are generally attended by a number of torch-bearers ; but this one was different from any I had ever seen, as, on crossing the ]\leerwah to enter the city, it was met by about fifty women, with small lamps, which they simultaneously lighted, and these in the darkness appeared through the trees like so many fireflies starting into life. The scene appeared illustrative of that de- scribed in the 25th chapter of St Matthew, except that the Khyrpoor virgins, being all wise ones, were well provided with oil ! The sight was very picturesque and pleas- ing, from the associations it called to mind. On another occasion I was awakened by

160 MAERIAGE PROCESSION.

music in the middle of the night, and on inquiry found that a marriage procession of villagers was passing through the city on their return homewards. These were four camels with Kejawas, or panniers, in which females usually travel in Sindh. Some of these camels carried four, others three, wo- men, and a host of children. At the head of the procession was carried a dholl, or deep- toned bass drum, which marked the time, and the females chanted in chorus in a most pleasing style ; as their voices were really harmonious, and there was none of that screaming for effect, to which most of the Indian singers are so prone.

As soon as the Meerwah was full, the Khyrpooreans feasted upon fish, of wliich a great variety is to be found, but none of them very much to my taste, as they are all more or less bony and some extremely coarse ; but Sindhians are not very nice, in fact they will eat anything that comes in their way ; even the flesh of alligator, which is peculiarly dry, hard, and flavourless, is never thrown away, and the Boolun, or river-hog, Anglice the porpoise, is, I am told,

WATER OF THE INDUS. 161

a delicacy with tlie Meeanees. The water of the Indus, like that of the Nile, is con- sidered peculiarly wholesome, and was always by the Ameers preferred to any well water ; but as it is of the colour and consistency of thin pea-soup, it is always necessary for Europeans to clear it with alum before drinking. The Sindhians, however, consider this quite needless, and, indeed, prefer the water of their river in its natural state. On the first appearance of the inundation, by the filling of the Meerwah, the Hindoos of Kh^Tpoor have public rejoicing and festivity, as they consider it a great blessing ; and so indeed it is, a great blessing to the po- pulation in many ways. I too found the Meerwah a convenience when full, as boats were passing daily from Sukkur to Dejee ; indeed. His Highness generally travelled by that route, having an English-built boat, which his people row very respectably.

Immediately after the Meerwah was full, the Kulloree, a lake to the eastward of the city which I have before noticed, began to fill so rapidly that the Bund, or dam, threat- ened to give way from the pressure of so

VOL. n. 11

162 BURSTING OF THE BUND.

large a body of water ; in several places, where such had occurred before, these were tem- porarily repaired, but in so insufficient a manner that when the inundation was at the highest the Bund bui'st, and had not prompt measures been adopted, half the city of Khyrpoor would have been washed away. Fortunately the Meer was there at the time, and exerted himself with great energy, as did his eldest son, in seeing the breaches in the Bund efficiently repaired. Indeed, they remained on the spot the whole day, as it was not until towards evening that the rush of waters abated, for it was found necessary to drive down large piles and fill the sj^aces with wood, banked up behind with earth ; and several hundred men, with all the carts and asses that could be impressed in and about Khyrpoor, were employed in bringing materials. I must say that all hands worked vigorously on the occasion ; but all were seriously alarmed, from the sovereign do^m- wards, and, as it was, the houses situated in the low grounds were flooded and many walls washed down.

In the preceding year a similar inundation

ANTICIPATED OUTBURST OF THE KULLOREE. 163

occurred, and some of the inliabitants tlien fled for safety to Lookman-ka Tanda, a fine village situated upon elevated ground on the high road from Hyderabad to Eoree. It was indeed ru- moured when I Avas at Khyrpoor that this would ere long become the capital ; and I think it by no means improbable, as there is every chance of Khyrpoor being swept away in some outburst of the Kulloree, unless the most in- fluential and wealthy men press the Meer to have the Bund so effectually repaired as to place the city beyond the pale of danger. This too can only be effected at a large expense ; but if the parties whose valuable property is thus imperilled will not con- tribute thereto, they deserve to have it de- stroyed. Should such a deluge as I antici- pate, moreover, occur during the night, great loss of life may be anticipated, both by drown- ing and the fall of walls, many of those at Khyrpoor being in so tumble-down a state that the slightest softening of their founda- tions would bring down the whole. Indeed, on the above occasion a wall near the gate- way of Meer Jehan Mahomed's house gave way during the night, and in its fall crushed

11 •

164 A WOUNDED SEPOY.

to death a poor Mooltani Sepoy, wliose duty it was to strike the hours on the Ghurry, so severely injured a second that his life was despaired of, and inflicted some ugly bruises on a third. At break of day I was summoned to see the wounded man, who was terribly crushed, but happily with- out broken bones ; so I caused him to be fomented all over with hot neem leaves, which seemed to afford him relief, and by persevering in this course of treatment, with bleeding, and cooling drinks, I soon had the gratification of seeing my patient on his legs again. It really was quite touching to wit- ness the attention paid to the wounded man by his comrade and countryman, who, though severely bruised himself, heeded not his own hurts, and afforded every assistance in his power to his suffering companion. I availed myself of the circumstance to recommend the Meer to have all the old walls pulled down by the convicts, and the hollows filled up and planted with tamarisk, as tending both to the salubrity and ornament of the city. This recommendation was, indeed, partly attended to ; but the convicts were not suf-

STATE OF KHYRPOOR. 165

ficiently numerous to get on very rapidly with the work, and at their then rate of pro- gress it will take two or three years to clear away the ruins that afford shelter to all kinds of vermin and obstruct the free passage of air. The shrubs too would flourish without water, and if attended to, might, by the production of gum, be made to repay the care bestowed on them ; but at any rate they would be more sightly than ruinous walls and hollows containing stagnant water, swarm- ing with musquitoes, and exhaling vile smells. Such was the state in which I found Khyr- poor, and the squalid looks of the people who reside in the vicinity of those spots tes- tified to the malaria that prevailed there.

Meer Ali Moorad himself, I believe, dislikes Khyrpoor, some say from one cause, some from another, but I think that this feeling may arise from its being the scene of his early troubles. His Highness was the favourite son of an aged father, who lost his life by an ac- cident, and then the orphan, if report speaks truth, was harshly treated by uncles who de- sired his inheritance. Meer Roostum was then verging on dotage, and notoriously addicted to

166 HABITS OF THE MEER.

intoxicating drugs. Meer Moobaruk was a very dissipated man ; in short, uncles, cousins, all did their best to despoil Meer Ali Moorad of his rights, and these events having occurred at Khyrpoor, it is hardly sui'prising that the Meer should dislike the place. His Highness, however, rarely sleeps three nights running in the same spot, for his habits are exceedingly nomadic, and even when in a city he generally sleeps in a tent. There is nothing too so par- ticularly attractive in Khyrpoor as to induce a prince at Meer Ali Moorad's age to forego the indulgence of a taste which has become a principle of his very existence. The luxuries of the most refined civilization have no charm for Meer Ali Moorad ; when in England he was courted and sought after in the highest circles, but the late hours of London parties were little to his taste, and His Highness could rarely be persuaded to attend them. All his habits were most simple ; he rose early, visited any public functionaries with whom he had business ; and then generally proceeded to the Kilburn shooting ground, where he practised firing at a mark for two or throe hours, re- turned home to dhmer, and was generally in

HIS LIKING FOR FIELD SPOETS. 167

bed by nine o'clock. Field sports alone are his object, and His Highness, I really think, never sees dog or gun without coveting them.

This, however, was not a feeling peculiar alone to Meer Ali Moorad, it was the feeling at large of the entire Talpoor race. " Their preserves were so strictly guarded," says Captain Post- ans, "that it would have been easier to have gained access to their harems ! " I really think too that the crime of a poacher captured in the latter description of preserve would hardly have experienced a more severe punishment than in the former! In the treaty of 1839 it was expressly stipulated by the Ameers that a clause should be introduced into the treaties with the British Government, providing for the inviolability of their shikargahs. '' We value them," said the chief addi^essing the British rej^resentative at their Court, '' as much as our wives and childi-en." With them, how- ever, the love of the chase was but a passion ; with Meer Ali Moorad it is an absolute mania, holding exclusive possession of his mind. It is, indeed, an unfortunate passion both for him- self and his people, at least, the cultivating class, who arc unwillingly forced away from

168 HOTE SINGH.

their lands to assist as beaters in a battue, with- out the smallest remuneration, their cultivated grounds being, moreover, ravaged by wild ani- mals, which they are never allowed to scare away or destroy under the heaviest penalties.

The only party benefited in the Meer's dominions is Hote Singh, his Mooktyar Kar, a man of notoriously indifferent character, to whom he unfortunately intrusts the entire con- trol of his territory, the revenues of wliich might be doubled by judicious management; but so long as Hote Singh shall be permitted to fill his present office, the Meer's pecuniary difficulties will remain unabated, and the op- pression of his subjects continue. I should, for my own part, very gladly see the Meer Moon- shee, Kishun Dass, or his brother, whom I con- sider the most respectable and respected men in His Highness' dominions, appointed to this responsible office. Either of the brothers is w^ell qualified to fill it, and they both of them possess as much of the confidence of ]\Ieer Ali Moorad as His Highness ever cares to give to any human being, for he is, as, indeed, well may he be, the most distrustful of men. The Meer in this particular, however, exhibits great

KELIGION OF THE SINDHIANS. 169

weakness, for he always trusts the untrust- worthy, and distrusts his staunchest friends, thus occasioning angry feelings in the breasts of his real well-wishers, for he manages matters so awkwardly that state secrets invariably ooze out, to the disappointment of his plans. I speak advisedly on this point, having been myself sent with his son Meer Fyze Mahomed on a special mission to a nobleman, his friend and well-wisher, which was to be kept profoundly secret from one of His Highness' staff, and to him our business and destination were known before we reached the Paddington Station. Fortunately for the Meer's interests, the gen- tleman referred to knew his weakness, and bore him no ill-will for the distrust, which, how- ever, must have been sufficiently mortifying.

The Ameers of Sindh, and a portion of the people, are of the Shiah persuasion, but the bulk of the Mahomedan population are Soonees. The Koran is their standard rule of faith, and their sacred book is held by all in such vener- ation, that no one but a Seyud, or Moollah, can venture to touch it, and oaths are sworn by placing it on the head of the party. On the Koran being brought into any assembly,

170 EVENING PRAYEE.

every person rises at its appearance. Those who have learned the enth-e Koran by heart are entitled to the distinction of " Hafiz ; " but many, who so assume the honorary title, can- not expound a chapter of the work. Pilgrim- ages to the shrines of the departed saints are considered acceptable to God, and accordingly, such zearuts are frequent, and the offering of the "faithful" bring great wealth to i\iQ 3Iooja- zvirs, or custodians of the holy shrines. The Mahomedans of Sindh are great formalists, and those perhaps who the least conscientiously act up to the faith they profess, make the greatest show of doing so. There is something, however, very touching in their evening prayer, which is scrupulously observed by every Mahomedan. In cities the sound of the Moouzzun's voice announces that the sun has set ; but wherever tbe good Moosulmaun may be, or however occupied, he watches for the disappearance of the orb of day, to prostrate himself in the atti- tude of adoration, and, facing towards Mecca, recites his prayer to the Almighty. This cere- mon}^ is most scrupulously attended to. Dis- mounting from his camel, or his horse, the traveller, ay, even the freebooter, throws him-

THE MOULAVIE. 171

self upon his carpet, the cultivator stops his work, the artisan lays down his tools, the boatman rests on his oar, the fisherman on his nets, — all alike join in simultaneous prayer to God. I have seen the highest in the land, and the humblest in social position, unite in this act of worship, and the heart of a Christian, albeit of a surety a very lax one, was in unison with theu' orisons.

When I came to England, five years ago, I was accompanied by a well-educated Mahome- dan gentleman of Lucknow, as one of the Wakeels of their Highnesses the Maharanees of Nagpore. On coming up the Red Sea, my friend the Moulavie questioned me about the position of Mecca, and begged that I would acquaint him when we got to the westward of that holy spot, in order that he might turn in the proper direction when saying his prayers. This I did, and upon our arrival in London I showed him which door in his room to face when making his prostrations. My directions, however, ho unluckily forgot, and when the time came for prayer he turned his face the wrong way, this too in presence of several of his own countrymen, who came to pay their

172 KMIZAN FESTIVAL.

respects on his arrival. His prayers, however, ended, and liis friends gone, I j^ointed out tlie error that he had committed. '' Oh," replied the poor old Moulavie, who has since been '' gather- ed to his fathers," "I don't suppose it will make much difference in my way to Paradise." The hot weather had fairly set in, and the Indus was nearly at its highest, when a royal salute from the Park of Khyrpoor announced the first glimpse of the new moon of Eamzaii, thus giving notice to all true believers that the festival had commenced. Immediately that the last gun had fired, the artillerymen embraced and offered each other congratula- tions, though whether these had reference to their most holy season, or betokened rejoicing at their own joersonal safety after firing guns of such doubtful strength as those of His High- ness, appeared rather questionable. The Rani- zan, or month of abstinence, fell, when I was at Khyrpoor, at the very hottest time of year, com- mencing on the sixteenth of April, when the thermometer in one of the coolest houses in the town was at 90°, or from that to 100°, daily ; thus, those who conscientiously observe the fast must suffer greatly, as they not only deny

FASTING UNFASHIONABLE AT KHYRPOOR. 173

themselves the slightest particle of food, but water also, and must not even swallow their saliva, from the earliest streak of dawn till stars are visible in the evening ; they are also debarred the use of the pipe, which, to a native of Sindh, is the greatest of all privations. During this fast, the days of the wealthy are chiefly passed in sleep ; but the really strict Mahomedans spend much of their time, during the Ramzan, in meditation and prayer, exclu- sive of their usual devotional exercises, and the learned read the Koran and other religious books. I have my doubts, however, whether there are many conscientious fasters at the Meer's capital, as the practice does not appear popular at the Court of Khyrpoor. Mahomedans, like Eoman Catholics, are not expected to fast when travelling, and His Highness, who passes his time almost entirely in hunting, is ever on the move ; thus neither himself, nor any of his suite, is expected to fast during the Ramzan.

The month Shawal, which follows Ramzan, was equally ushered in by a royal salute on the first glimmer of the new moon ; and this must have been a profoundly gratifj^ing an- nouncement to all strict observers of the Ma-

174 THE KHOODBAH.

liomedan law in the city of Khyrpoor. But real or pretended fasters, or no tasters at all, the countenances of the people betokened their satisfaction at the termination of that season of abstinence; and everybody saluted every- body in the streets with '' Chand Jce mooharuclx;^'' '-'- the compliments of the moon to you."

The Meer arrived early on the following morn- ing, in high spirits at having the preceding day shot an enormous tiger ; and after having bathed and dressed, proceeded on horseback, accompanied by three of his sons and a numer- ous retinue, to the Eedgah, east of the city ; where a large tent-fly had been pitched to shelter the princes from the sun, whilst the usual prayers and the Khoodbah were read. Royal salutes were fired on the Meer's arrival and departure ; and when all was over His Highness and sons got into his phaeton, and proceeded to his favourite garden, the dolagha, which I have already described, where all the notables of Khyrpoor, both Mahomedan and Hindoo, assembled to pay their respects to the sovereign, who conferred presents on his visitors and attendants. Amongst the number was a little Sindhi, much addicted to stimulants, who had

BUCKREED FESTIVAL. 175

returned witli us from Bombay in charge of the Meer's Englisli geese and fighting cocks. One of the former had died on the way up the Indus, and the little man, being fearful of pun- ishment for want of care, on this occasion pre- sented himself with the surviving gander under his arm, holding an umbrella over his head with one hand, and fanning it vigorously with the other, in order to display his extreme care of his English charge ; indeed, had it been an English baby, in which his royal master had a personal interest, he could not have exhibited greater care of its health and com- plexion. There were also several taefas, or sets of dancing girls, who received presents, varying in amount from ten to thirty rupees each, according to their several status, beauty, and professional qualifications. In short, all appeared happy, all Avcre dressed in their best, and Mahomedans and Hindoos seemed equally bent on enjoyment.

On the 10th of the month Zilhuz, which precedes that of Mohurrum, is the Buckreed festival, which is in commemoration of Abra- ham's offering up of Isaac ; but the Mahomedans believe it not to have been Isaac, but Ishmael,

176 HADJ AT MECCA.

from whom they declare themselves to be de- scended. They commemorate the day by the sacrifice of animals according to their means ; the more wealthy sacrifice a camel, those in humbler circmiistances a goat or a kid. This answers the double purpose of honouring the memory of the patriarchs, their progenitors, and also of affording their families a good meal. The Mahomedans believe that the entrance to Paradise is only accessible by a bridge of scythes, or other sharp instruments, called nl semuf, and imagine that their safe passage will depend on the number of animals that they have sacrificed at this festival. On the day of Buckreed the pilgrims, or /iad(/i, annually per- forui the hadj at Mecca.

CHAPTER VI.

Molmrrum — Syed Jaffer All Shah — Murseeahs — Procession — Dool- Dool — Chanting of Women — Gallantries of Hindoo Ladies — Eloquence of Syed Mehr-i-Durrya Shah — Mourning Garments — Mortifying the Flesh — Hyderabad Puthan Pight — Sindhian Superstitions — Magicians — Magic Mirror— The Meer Moonshee — Science of Hazirat — "Wasps discover Pilferers — Evil Spirits around a Sick Bed — A Wounded Prince — Amusements during Convalescence.

Twenty days after the Buckreed, commences the month MohmTum, on the first day of which moon begins a festival, which amongst the Shiah Mahomedans is one of deep mom:ning, whilst the Soonees of Hindoostan make it a scene of mummery and sport. As my readers may like to knoAV what this festival is, I give the following slight sketch of it.

The Mahomedans of Khyrpoor, indeed the Sindhi Mahomedans generally, profess to be Soonees, but their practices at this festival seem more in accordance with those of the Sliiah

VOL. II. 12

178 THE MOHURRUM FESTIVAL.

persuasion. The Mohurrum festival is hold by the Shiahs in solemn remembrance of their first martyrs Husseyn and Hussun, the two sons of Fatima, daughter of the prophet and Ali, from whom the Seyuds are all descended. After the murder of their father by order of the usurping Calipha, these two princes with their families removed from Shawn, the capital, to Medina, where they resided several years. At length the people of Shawn, being weary of King Yezeed's oppressive rule, invited Hus- seyn to return to their capital, and assume his lawful right as Emaum (leader of the faith- ful). Before accepting his invitation, however, Husseyn sent his cousin Moslem to ascertain and report the exact state of public feeling. Unhappily this became known; Moslem was seized by order of the usurper and cast from a precipice, and a reward being offered for the heads of his innocent sons, they were barba- rously murdered. Hussun was poisoned by an emissary of the tyrant, and Husseyn, the last victim of the descendants of the prophet's family to King Yezeed's fury, suffered a cruel death, after the most severe trials, upon the

CHANTING OF WOMEN. 179

plains of Kerbulla, upon the lOtli day of the Arabian month Mohurrum.

These tragical events form the subject of the ten days' mourning festival, which com- mences on the morning after the moon becomes visible. During the first six days, mourning assemblies were held at Khyrpoor in the house of Syed Jaffer Ali Shah, here- ditary conscience-keeper to his sovereign, and in other places, where preachers recited ser- vices relating to the sad events above men- tioned, from the various books composed on the subject, descriptive of the life, sufferings, and martyrdom of Husseyn and Hussun. The Murseealis^ or hymns, said to be of great merit, were chanted with much effect ; the names of their lawful leaders were mentioned with blessings, and curses were showered on the usurping Caliphas. This chanting was accom- panied with every sign of grief, the mourners in- cessantly beating their breasts as they invoked the names of the martyred Emaums, Y\diilst tears were shed in abundance by both sexes, and an attendant, with a bag of ashes, powdered tliere- with the heads of the weeping congregation.

12'

180 THE PEOCESSION.

From the commencement of the Mohur- rmn sacred standards were placed in certain situations. These on the seventh night were taken in procession all through the town of Khyrpoor. On the eighth night, which is called SeJ Ice rat^ frameworks of bamboo, covered with tinsel to represent the martyred Husseyn's marriage bed, were carried in pro- cession through the town, commencing about midnight. First came an elephant bearing a sacred standard, followed by four carts, each laden with a pair of Nagaras, or kettle- drums of enormous size, and a shrill wind in- strument. Next appeared the martyred Hus- seyn's horse Dool-Dool, handsomely caparisoned and seemingly pierced with arrows and splashed with gore, as he fell with his master at Kerbulla. Then came the principal SeJ or bed, carried by bearers and accompanied by numerous standards. On reaching the entrance to the main street the procession halted, and a number of men commenced chanting nnu'- seeahs in Sindhi, after a snuffling monotonous fashion. This suddenly ceased, and all stood up shouting '' Ya Husseyn, Ya Husseyn," at the same time striking tlieir breasts, which

CHANTING OF WOMEN. 181

was immediately followed by '' Hiissmi, IIus- sun," in the same manner.

The procession then moved on a short distance, and a band of women, sixty or seventy in num- ber, commenced chanting a mm^sceah in a very sweet and plaintive manner. In this band were all the ladies of the Khyrpoor opera, whose fine voices contributed greatly to the general harmony, and who, I suppose, sought by their exertions on this occasion to obtain heavenly pardon for their little professional peccadilloes. After this the procession moved on somewhat further, and the like ceremony was repeated at every cJwiuJc, or market-place, till they arrived at the Dcyoree, where the mother of His Highness' two younger sons resides. The chanting of the men was the reverse of har- monious, but that of the women, from their numbers, was very soft and pleasing to the ear, and the effect was increased by the sound ever and anon of a deep-voiced bell or goongroo, which gave quite a melodramatic tone to the spectacle. 1 was well placed both for seeing and hearing, not only indeed seeing the procession itself, but, being in an upstair room, for witnessing a little by -pi ay in the

182 MEHR-l-DURYA SHAH.

verandah of a Hindoo's house below, where many of both sexes were assembled to see the procession on its way ; and I was informed by an experienced friend that the Hindoo ladies avail themselves of the opportunities afforded by the Mohurrum, when all the world is abroad, to carry on their gallantries ad libi- tum, but I will be discreet in my observations.

The Hindoos of Khyrpoor really appear to take as much interest in the procession as the Mahomedans themselves, probably by reason of the excitement that it produces. The '' great gun " of the festival was a holy man, named Syed Mehr-i-Durya Shah, who comes to Khyrpoor every year at the Mo- hurrum, and certainly is a most eloquent nar- rator, his highly-coloured description of the sufferings of the martyred family never fail- ing to cause his congregation to exhibit the strongest marks of grief ; all Asiatics are, however, excitable to a degree that we, cold- blooded children of the West, have no con- ception of, and I saw the tears pouring down the cheeks of Meer Jehan Mahomed in such a way that I was convinced they were real. The holy man, whose powers of eloquence

MOETIFYING THE FLESH. 183

are so extraordinarily great, is, I believe, from all I heard, an admirable actor, and I am at any rate very sure that he is an exceed- ingly clever man, but it is rumoured that his annual visits to Khyrpoor are influenced rather by the attractions of beauty than spirit- ual considerations, at least such was the current rumour of the place. During the Mohurrum fes- tival most Mahomedans affect to maintain a serious demeanour. The Meer abstains from field sports, the women are not allowed to wear any sort of ornament, and both sexes are obliged to appear in mourning garments of green, black, or Khakee, a sort of slate-colour, which is very becoming to them. They also affect to mor- tify their bodies, and during the festival will not sleep on a charpoy, but pretend to believe, or make themselves fancy, that they lie on the ground, simply because they turn the charpoy upside down, as if doing so made any difference in their comfort. Now, if a Sindhi really wished to mortify his flesh, he would abstain from tlie hookah during the festival !

On the ninth night of Mohurrum the tastes are brought out and carried round in procession,

184 CONCLUSION OF THE MOHURRUM.

much in the same order as on the preceding night. These are generally slight frames of wood covered with tinsel and coloured paper, and in the larger ones are represented the tombs of Husseyn and Hussun. At the Presi- dencies, and in the great Mahomedan cities of Delhi, Lucknow, and Hyderabad, the tazies are constructed of ebony, ivory, sandal wood, cedar, and some of silver filigree ; in fact, con- structed of every material, according to the means of the party, from pure silver down to bamboo and coloured paper ; but Khyrpoor is a very poor place, and the tazies there were of the kind last described. These on the tenth or last day of the festival are carried about nearly from morning till night, after which some of the frames are deposited in mosques or private dwellings in readiness for use in the ensuing year. Thus ends this scene of excessive hum- bug and considerable debauchery I

In the large cities of India the Mohurrum festival is often marked by bloodshed, as no- thing can exceed the bitterness of the two sects towards each other. The Shiali Mahomed ans believe Ali and his descendants to be their law- ful leaders after ]\Iahomed, whilst the Soonees

SECTARIAN FIGHT AT HYDERABAD. 185

are no less persuaded that the Callphas Aboo- bukur, Oomur, and Hoosmaun, are equally with All to be acknowledged as their leaders, each in his turn ; and accordingly the two sects hold each other in deadly hatred, and bottle up their quarrels, feuds, and animosities for settlement at the next Mohurrum.

At Hyderabad in the Dekkan I once wit- nessed a fight between the Shiahs and Soonees, in which some hundreds lost their lives, al- though it merely commenced in a dispute re- garding the exposition of a portion of the Koran. Three of one sect happened to be passing the Mecca Mosque, in which a Moollah of the opposite persuasion was expounding some portion of the sacred volume of the Mahomedans, and his views not suiting those of the three, they grossly insulted him, for which two of them were cut down, but the third escaping gathered round him a tumultuous multitude. In the scuffle that ensued several lives were lost. The originators of the affray were Puthans from Chinchilghora, a village belonging to that tribe, about two miles distant from the Resi- dency; the Puthans, on learning the death of their brethren, mustered their forces next morn-

186 CONFLICT WITH THE MOGHUL HORSE.

ing, and the Hyderabad people doing the same, a regular fight ensued on Boorani Sahib's Dur- gah. The Puthans, under their gallant leader, Suleyman Khan, stood on the defensive ; their numbers were, indeed, few, but I never saw so fine a body of men. I rode through their vil- lage and found them all prepared to mount at a moment's notice ; but nothing could be more courteous than their demeanour, and they salaamed to me as I passed, such being strongly in contrast with the insolent swaggering of the city Moghuls, who at that time made a point of insulting Europeans, On reaching the Resi- dency at Chudderighaut, I found the official people out on the roof watching the progress of affairs at the Durgah. A large body of Moghul Horse, with two guns, had just emerged from the city, and were advancing towards the Puthans, followed by a numerous rabble on foot. The Puthans were drawn up under cover of some buildings, and the guns opened on them, but they instantly charged, and took them be- fore they could fire a second round, the Moghul Horse at once bolting away ; but their leader, Neas Khan Bahader, Avho was on an elephant, dismounted, and, getting on horseback, rallied

DATAH KOWAHUR. 187

liis troopers, aud led them again gallantly to the charge. In the 7nelee the two leaders met, but Neas Khan Bahader's horse, receiving a cut on his nose, reared and threw his rider, and in rising to remount he was cut down. On this the Moghuls fled, leaving the Puthans masters of the field. Upon the following morning the Bolarum force was brought up ; the presence of the troops awed both parties into submission, and tranquillity was restored. A few days afterwards the Puthans were ordered to quit the Nizam's dominions, and they moved down to Kurnool, where they settled, and a small body have since been taken into the British service under the denomination of the " Kur- nool Horse."

The Sindhis, both Mahomedan and Hindoo, are a very superstitious people, and place great reliance on the ability of departed spirits to serve or injure them^ and consequently pay great reverence to the tombs of men of sanctity. Near Shahdadpore, in Chandookah district, is a pair of mill-stones, about four feet in diameter, in a garden on the banks of the Datah canal, so called after him who formed it, Datah Kowa- hur, a man as renowned for his wealth, and the

188 SINDHIAN SUPERSTITIONS.

canals executed by him, as for his unbounded liberaUtj. He was, in fact, the Hatim Tai of the province. It is said that no poor man ever passed his door without being fed; and the above mill-stones are considered sacred, for it is declared and firmly believed that the Al- mighty was so pleased with Datah's piety and liberality, that if even a handful of grain was thrown on them, the supply of flour was equal to all demands. Whether they still retain this virtue I cannot say, but they are always ap- proached with bare feet, and are kept clean and in good order. There is also a tomb over the remains of a celebrated Peer, on poles around which are hung numerous heel-ropes ; as whenever a horse is afflicted with disease, the owner makes a zearut at the tomb, and offers the horse's heel-ropes, on his recovery, in grati- tude for the saint's assistance. If any one break a branch of the tree which overshadows this tomb, it is believed that the curse of God will be upon him. All Sindhis firmly believe in magic and evil spirits ; and in this as in many other particulars they much resemble the na- tives of Egypt. Indeed, a process is practised in Sindli, for the discovery of thieves and re-

MAGICIANS. 189

CO very of stolen property, very similar to that noticed in Mr Lane's work entitled ^' Modern Egyptians," as related to that gentleman by Mr Salt, the then Consul- General in that coun- try, which he thus describes : —

'' Mr Salt, having reason to believe that one of his servants had stolen property from his house, sent for a celebrated Mugliralee magician, with a view to intimidate them and induce the thief to confess his crime. The magician accordingly came, and said that he would cause the exact image of the person who had committed the theft to appear to any youth not arrived at the age of puberty, and requested Mr Salt to send for one. Accordingly a boy was called in from the ad- jacent garden, and, after certain ceremonies, he described the thief and said that he knew him. He then ran down into the garden and pointed out the man, who at once confessed his crime." Here is the magic process as described by Mr Lane. ''The name of the magician was Shaikh Abdool Khader-el Mughrabee, who prepared for the experiment of the magic mirror, which is termed darh-cl-mendel, by cutting a narrow slip of paper, whereupon he wrote certain forms of invocation, together with another charm by

190 FORM OF INVOCATION.

■which he professed to accomplish the object of the experiment. On being requested he readily fm-nished copies of these, at the same time explaining that his object was accomplished through the influence of the two first words, Tarshiui and Taryooslmn^ which he said were the names of two genii, his familiar spirits. The following is a translation of the words : —

^' Tarshun ! Taryooshun ! Come down — come down ! Be present. Whither are gone the prince and his troops ? Where are El Akmar the prince and his troo^DS ? Be present, ye servants of these names, and this

is the removal and we have removed from thee

thy veil, and thy sight to-day is piercing.

Correct. Correct." Having written these, the magician cuts off the paper containing the form of invocation, from that upon which the other charm was writ- ten, and cuts the former into six slips. He then explained that the object of the latter charm, which contains part of the Soorat Kaf^ or 50th chapter of the Koran, was to open the boy's eyes in a supernatural manner, and

MAGIC SQUARE. 191

make his sight pierce into what is to us the invisible world.

A chafing-dish, with some live charcoal in it, having been previously prepared, frank- incense and coriander seed were put therein, and it was placed before the magician and the boy, the latter appearing about eight years of age ; then taking hold of the boy's right hand he drew therein with pen and ink a magic square. In the centre he poured a little ink, and desired the boy to look into it and tell him if he could see the reflection of his own face therein ; the boy replied that he did so clearly. The magician, all the while hold- ing the boy's hand, desired him to continue looking intently on the ink, and not to raise his head. He then took one of the strips of paper, inscribed witli the invocation, and dropped it into the chafing-disli upon the burning coals and perfumes, which had al- ready filled the room with smoke ; and as he did this he kept up an indistinct mutter- ing of words, which he continued during the whole process, except when asking the boy a question. The piece of paper, containing

192 MAGIC MIRROR.

the words from the Koran, he placed inside the boy's skull cap. He then asked him if he saw anything in the ink ; the boy answered No, but in a minute or so began trembling and appeared much frightened. He then said, '' I see a man sweeping the ground." The magician then asked if he knew what a flag was, and, being answered in the affii^mative, directed him to say, '' Bring a flag.'' The boy did so, and presently said, ''He has brouo'ht a flaa:." "What colour is it?" asked the magician; " Red," replied the boy. In the same manner he was told to call for six other flags, which he described as being respectively brought before him; specifying their colours as black, white, green, &c. Whilst this was doing, the magician put the second and third of the small strips of paper on which the invocation was written into the chafing dish, and fresh frankincense and coriander seed being repeatedly added, the ftmaes became quite painful to the eyes.

After the boy had described the seven flags, he was desired to call for the Sultaun's tent. In about a minute he said, " Some men have

MAGICAL EXPEEIMENTS. 193

brought a large green tent," and presently added, "they have set it up." Soldiers were then called for, and told to pitch their own tents. Other orders were subsequently given, and similarly obeyed, till the magician had put the last strip of paper into the chafing-dish. For all this, however, the boy, a seeming stranger to the magician, might have been tutored previously, but on the magician mut- tering, nothing could be distinguished but words of the invocation again and again re- peated, and of this much was inaudible, except- ing on two or three occasions, when he was heard to say, '' If they demand information, inform them, and be ye veracious."

The magician after this asked if he wished to see any one who was absent or dead. He named Lord Nelson, but it Avas with difficulty that the boy, after many trials, could be brought to do so. He, however, presently said, " The man is dressed in black European clothes, and has lost his left arm." He presently cor- rected himself and said, ''No, his arm is placed in his breast." Another person was then called for, and a correct description given, but in several other cases the description was impcr-

VOL. II. 13

194 THE MEER MOONSHEE.

feet, tlioiigli not altogether incorrect. He re- presented each object as appearing less distinct than the preceding one, towards the close of the performance. Another boy was then called in, but he could see nothing, and the magician said he was too old.

I shall now show that the very same process is practised in Sindh to the like ends. About two years ago the Meer Moonshee, Kishun Doss, lost a valuable Chowry [an instrument made of the Thibet cow's tail, and used for driving off flies] set in gold, which he intended to present at a certain shrine. This having been stolen from his house he was advised to apply to one Gholaum Hyder Shah, a holy Seyud of Khyr- poor, who, by his knowledge of the science of Hazirat^ or the use of the magic mirror, would be sure to discover the thief The Seyud, having been accordingly sent for, was told the particulars of the robbery, and at once engaged to find out the thief, but requested the Moonshee to wait two or three days, that he might con- sult his books and make preparations. The Seyud then directed that all the Moonshee's servants should be called up before him, and, having examined them separately, he exhorted

SCIENCE OF IIAZIRAT. 195

the guilty party, who he was sure, he said, must be present, to restore the Chowry before dis- grace should come upon him. This exhorta- tion, however, proved unavailing, and the Seyud was again sent for, but declined making any experiment as the sky was cloudy. On the following day he again attended, and the Moonshee was requested to procure a boy who had not attained the age of puberty, and had never been bitten by a dog. An intelligent lad of nine or ten years of age having been provided by the Moonshee, whose brother and other respectable persons were present, to- gether with all the Moonshee's servants, the boy was first batlied, and a new red waistcloth being tied round him and a piece of the same placed over his head, like a woman's Duputta, the end hanging do^vn on the shoulders, he was seated on the ground with the Se3^ud in front of him, and another holy man reciting portions of the Koran behind. A bright metal cup was then placed in the boy's hands, a magic figm^e having been previously prepared of the following form, in the bottom of the cup, into which he poured a little ink.

The boy was directed to lean his face over

196 MAGIC CUP.

the cup, and on no account to raise his head. After remaining some time in this attitude, he was asked if he saw anything, the ink being kept wet; he said, "Yes, I see a boy with a red cloth over his head," such being of course the reflection of himself. Both the Seyud and his assistant then commenced reciting some- thing, the former in a low, monotonous, sing- song tone, and every now and then tapping the boy's head and blowing on it, each time asking if he saw anything, the latter reciting portions of the Koran in a louder voice. This was ac- companied by the burning of much frankin- cense and cardamoms, which caused a smoke very distressing to the eyes. Every one's pa- tience being at length nearly exhausted, the Seyud took out paper and wrote four charms ; one of these he gave to his assistant, telling him to press it hard ; a second he placed under the boy ; a third he gave to the Moonshee, and kept the fourth himself. More gums were then burnedj and after a time the boy appeared frightened, and said, ''I see a sweeper sweeping the ground;" he then said, ''The sweeper has disappeared." Presently after he declared that he saw a bheesty Avatering the place, then a

MAGICAL PROCEEDINGS. 197

man spreading a carpet. At this time the boy- was asked by the Seyud '' for what purpose the carpet was spread;" after a few minutes he answered, '' The king is coming — he is coming from the south," pointing in that direction, and addmg, ''he is on a bay horse with a golden saddle and silk pad — he is now seated on his throne." After a time he said, '' The king has sent a man to catch the thief, he is bringing him before the king, the thief protests his inno- cence, but is beaten." The Seyud asked the boy if he could recognise the thief, he replied, '' He is a tall Hindoo with a closely-shaven beard and small moustache, and there is another (meaning an accomplice) of smaller stature, with beard on the chin." The Seyud then asked '' if he could recognise them amongst the people pre- sent ;" he replied, '' Certainly." He was then asked where the property was; he replied, " It is tied up in a white cloth and buried in a cer- tain place." The Seyud desired him to ask for it; the boy replied, ''The king orders me to follow him;" he then jumped up, still looking in the cup, and the Seyud holding him by the hand ; he led tho way to a large banyan tree, in the Moonshee's court-yard, where ho seated

198 THIEF DETECTED.

himself. The Seyucl then told him to show the stolen property, to which the boy answered, ''The king is going away." He was then direct- ed to name the thieves, and at once mentioned " Lauloo and Reyloo." Both parties were pre- sent, but said nothing, though the latter sub- sequently confessed his guilt. The boy was then told to point out the parties ; he at first looked stupefied, but presently pointed out the two men, who were at once seized and handed over to the kotwal, who flogged them severely, despite their protestations of innocence. After they had been several days in irons and no signs of recovering the property, one Sheikh Saly, a celebrated astrologer, came over from Dejee, and paying the Mecr Moonshee a visit, assured him that the prisoners were innocent, and that he could discover the thief. The astrologer's assurances being credited by the Moonshee, he engaged his services. The astro- loger then informed the Moonshee that the property was so carefully concealed, being buried in the earth, that it would be with diffi- culty recovered, and requested an advance of money to enable him to commence operations. The funds being supplied, he went on zearut to

SHEIKH SALY. 199

Cliuttor Sliali's tomb, and on his return in twenty days informed the Moonshee that he had obtained some information, and would let him know all particulars on the following day. He then requested that the two men who were in confinement should be sent with him to a certain old mosque. The astrologer next pre- pared a charm, and directed one of the' men to throw it into the air and dig where it should fall; he accordingly did so, and at a considerable depth dug up the Thibet cow's tail, but minus its golden handle. This, however, was some- thing, and the astrologer being questioned, said that his reason for searching in the mosque was by desu'c of the saint at whose shrine he had been to worship, and who had appeared to him when praying at his tomb, and that he expected shortly to obtain complete information, on the strength of which the Moonshee made him a further advance of rujDees. About this time the Moonshee was advised to institute strict inquiry amongst all the j^urchasers of gold at Khyrpoor and the villages for some miles around. The advice was judicious, for many days had not elapsed when several persons came forward with broken pieces of gold, which they declared

200 BUDMAUSHES.

to liave purchased from the astrologer hunsclf. On this that worthy was at once placed in con- finement, and Reyloo then confessed all particu- lars of the robbery, which occurred in thiswise: — Reyloo was, it seems, very anxious for a son, and by the advice of a friend went to the astrologer and besought him to prepare such a charm as would insure that domestic good for- tune. This the astrologer undertook to do "for a consideration," but that consideration was beyond poor Reyloo' s means ; however, the astrologer kept him in pla}^, and directed him to call from time to time. In these visits he obtained such influence over the poor weak- minded Reyloo, as to induce him to rob his master of the gold-handled chowry, which he gave to Sheikh Saly the astrologer, in full assurance that it would induce him to furnish the required charm. The astrologer to the last protested his innocence, but the evidence of the goldsmiths was conclusive, and both himself and his accomplice, Reyloo, were branded in the forehead as " Buclmaushes " [rogues], and their beards and eyebrows having been shaved off, they were paraded through the town on asses, face to the tail, after which they were

WAYS OF DETECTING PILFERERS. 201

expelled the place with ignominy. It subse- quently came out that the reason of the astro- loger appearing at all was his o^ti fear that his accomplice, Heyloo, might be flogged into confession ; so he volunteered his services, and boldly asserted the innocence of the two prisoners. My informant said that he sup- posed the boy selected Reyloo and the other man, on a secret hint from the Seyud, Gholaum Hyder Shah, who was intently watching the countenances of the parties assembled, and felt sure that the thief was amongst them. The Seyud, however, strenuously denied this to my- self, and declared that he believed the dis- covery had been made entirely through the science of ''Hazirat." I confess my own scep- ticism in the matter, but my Khyrpoor friends were all against me, though, when robbed them- selves, some adopted simpler and, to my think- ing, more certain means of discovering the pilferer. One of them liaving been repeatedly robbed of his sugar-candy, which was kept in an open earthen vessel in a small inner-room, with tobacco for his hookah, conserve of roses, and other choice matters, bethought him of a way to discover the thief, and did so in this

202 WASPS DISCOVER PILFERERS.

wise. Having caught a dozen or so of wasps, lie clipped off their wings, and dropped them into the jar of sugar-candy. The room was open to all the servants, but nothing occurred till the dusk of the evening, when one of them going into the room ostensibly to bring some tobacco for his master's hookah, was heard to set up a fearful yell. The master at once knew that his bait was taken, and, rushing into the room Avith several servants, caught the pilferer flagrante delicto, as with a handful of sugar- candy he had grasped some half-dozen wasps. Wasps, or dambos^ as they are called, and lain- daJiaree damhos^ or hornets, were the plague of our lives at Khyrpoor, as the walls of those old houses, being full of cracks and crevices, har- boured them in myriads, and I repeatedly suf- fered from their stings, those of the JcundaJiarce dambos causing quite as much pain as an or- dinary scorpion sting.

I also heard of another ingenious way of detecting a pilferer ; the party who had been robbed drove a wooden pin into the floor of a dark inner room, and anointed it thoroughly Avith a preparation of Hing, or asafoetida ; he then assembled his servants.

MEEK KHAN MAHOMED. 203

one of whom lie knew must be the thief, and after a preliminary ceremony to awaken their superstitious fears, he said, '' Now go into that room singly, and lay firmly hold of the pin, the guilty party will stick to it, the others need have no fears." The serv- ants having gone in and returned, one at a time, their hands were examined, and all but one were found to smell strongly of asa- foetida. That one was, of course, the thief; as, knowing himself to be unobserved, he had not touched the pin, for fear of sticking to it, as he had been told he would, and his house being searched, the stolen property was found therein.

I have before remarked on the supersti- tions of the Sindhis ; and such superstition is more especially remarkable in all relating to the sick. I was called on one day to go and see the Meer's youngest son, Meer Khan Mahomed, who was suffering from an enor- mous abscess in the abdomen, caused by his horse falling and trampling on him. On reaching the Deorle, one of the palaces, if palaces they can be called, I found the young man lying on a charpoy, around

204 EVIL SPIRITS.

whicli were several of his friends and attend- ants, amongst whom were two Hujams or barbers, who act as sm^geons in India in parts where Em^opean practitioners are not to be met with. Two Hukeems or physicians, though both, by the courtesy of Khyrpoor, were styled Kazee or judge, because their fathers had in former days held that office, began reciting a prayer in a sing-song tone, but no one seemed moved thereby to devo- tion, unless it might be one of the Kazees, who was busy with his Tusheeah, or rosary, seemingly for effect. The two Hujams then began removing the dressings, which opera- tion they preceded with a BismiUah, "in the name of God," followed by an invocation to the Emaums, and an attendant carried a small earthen pot containing fire round the charpoy, and placed it at the foot to drive away evil spirits ; and of a surety, if such sjiirits had noses, they would not voluntarily have remained within range of the stench thus created by burning Hurmidl, a medicinal seed of peculiarly sickening odour to an empty stomach. Thus nothing, I should think, could be better adapted to the purpose of

A WOUNDED PRINCE. 205

expelling the evil spirits wherewith the Sindhis believe the circumambient air of a sick-bed to be filled. The gash in the poor youth's abdomen, for the abscess had been opened by one of the barber surgeons, was fully six inches in length, and in one place rather deep. This the Hujams plugged up with pledgets of rag, steeped in a kind of balsam ; then laid thereon a quantity of boiled murgosa leaves, placing over all a large lump of clay, kneaded with cow-dung and oil, and a compress with bandages. The patient grinned a little when they were poking the pledgets into the wound ; but on the whole bore himself manfully, considering that he was only a youth of fifteen, and a prince too. The treatment adopted in refer- ence to this case did not impress me with a high opinion of the vulnerary skill of the Sindhian barbers, and I protested against it both verbally and in writing to the Meer himself, at whose request I attended the opening of the dressings morning and evening. I recommended poulticing, but that they laughed at, until the wound assumed so threatening an appearance that His Higli-

206 AMUSEMENTS DURING CONVALESCENCE.

ness became alarmed, and an express was des^oatched for the staff sm^geon at Shikar- poor, whoj on seeing the young prince, con- firmed what I had told them, ordered their dressings to be removed, poultices to be ap- plied, and cleanliness to be attended to ; and the last, I confess, was a very necessary in- junction. The poor Hujams were in an awful fright lest the Meer should punish them for their want of skill, and very furious he was at the moment, but Meer Ali Moorad's anger as speedily subsides as it boils up, and I soon pacified him in regard to them; but the fine present which they expected to re- ceive on completion of the cure was lost to tliem and their heirs for ever. ^

During the young prince's convalescence, I witnessed how such youths are amused on the like occasions ; one morning a young wild sow, about two-thirds grown, with a sliglit wound in one of her thighs, was brought in from the Meer's camp, and being tied to a tree was baited with savage dogs, until death ended her torments ; on other mornings partridges and crows, the latter with their bills broken, were the objects of torture, and

GOOLABEE SHERABA. 207

seemed to afford the youth as much amusement as the hawks which were slipped at them, and when the young Meer was able to sit up, all the Kunchunnees in the city were collected at the Deoree, and he gave a grand nautch in honour of his recovery, to which most of the notables of Khyrpoor were invited ; nautching must be very warm work for the Coryphees at any season, but at Khyrpoor in the month of June it must be extremely so ; and such they seemed to feel it, judging from the enormous quantity of exceedingly fiery spirits that they swallow on such oc- casions. Having a curiosity to taste a liqueur that seemed so much to the taste of the ladies, a bottle was sent me by a friend, who informed me that it contained forty ingredients. The liquid was called '' Goolabee Sheraba," or Rose Wine. It is made of al- cohol distilled from raw sugar, with a great variety of hot spices, and highly perfumed with roses. I just tasted the preparation, which was anything but palatable, apart from the strength of the spirit itself, which was like liquid fire. My throat did not recover

208 WANDERING CASHMEEPJANS.

its tone for several hours after the experi- ment.

The Sindhis firmly believe that carrying on the person a brown stone called Sung-i- Murri/am is a preventive of hemorrhoids. Also that the Zuhr Mohra^ a black stone inscribed all over with the name of the Almighty, if scraped, and the scrapings swallowed in water, will render innoxious the bite of the most deadly snake, and is an antidote to every kind of poison. Some wandering Cashmeerians sup- plied me with these invaluable stones, the virtues whereof I here proclaim, though with- out pledging myself to their efficacy. These people described themselves as natives of Gil- Gut Tubbutt in Cashmeer, and seemed to have been wandering over all India ; in fact, I am mistaken if I did not see this very band at Madras, where they said they had come from Persia, about six years ago. They afterwards got into some trouble, I heard, for having kid- napped a young lady of Hubshee or Sidy origin.

Burton mentions a curious custom amongst the Dapliir or Shikaries, who are of so low a

THE DAPHIR. 209

caste that they are not allowed to enter a mosque, although Moslems. They eat carrion, and live in the Shikargahs. When, however, one of this class wishes to become a good Moosulmaun, he lights four fires, places him- self in the midst, and stands there till suffi- ciently purified by the heat. The Kazee then orders him to bathe and dress in fresh clothes, and finally teaches him the Kulmeh. He then enters into the Machlii class.

VOL. 11.

CHAPTER VII.

Meer Ali Moorad — Britisli Breaches of Taith — Maharanees of Nagpore — Siudiah — Jhansi — Carnatic Stipendiaries J — Prince Azeeni Jah — King of Oudh — Sir Charles Napier's Prophetic Warnings — Causes of the Insurrection — Mr Layard — Feeling of the People — Finance — Wasteful Expenditure — Salaries of Pon- dicherry Officials — Sir Charles Trevelyan — Mr Bright's Speech on Indian Reform — Improved PoUcy — Native Qualifications — Bathborne's Report — Demeanour towards Natives — Our Govern- ment of Siudh — Beneficial Results — Departure from Khyrpoor — Adieu to Sindh.

I WAS induced to go to Sindh in the expect- ation of remaining there only a few months, as Meer Ali Moorad, conscious of his own in- tegrity of pm-pose to continue, as he had ever been, the true and loyal ally of the British Government, implicitly believed that the Board of Control would, with equal good faith, carry out the assurances that had been given to him in London. This belief too was confirmed by the com'tesies of the Grovernor of Bombay, which on his return were strongly in contrast

BRITISH BREACHES OF FAITH. 211

with the want of proper respect evinced by the authorities at that Presidency on his way to England. Sanguine as His Highness then was of the early ftdfilmcnt of his hopes, he became too even more sanguine on the Con- servative party coming into power, as the Earl of Ellenborough, G.C.B., to whom he was personally known, and who had ever been favourable' to his cause, was again at the head of the India Board. Had His Lordship con- tinued in that high office, he would, I doubt not, have restored the territory of which the Meer had been deprived, as his sentiments on the subject were unmistakably expressed in the House of Lords shortly after the Mar- quis of Dalhousie had committed that particu- lar act of spoliation. Unfortunately, though, for His Highness, Lord Ellenborough was induced to resign his post, after a very brief tenure; and then Meer Ali Moorad's case seems to have been shelved by the Home Authorities, as the Secretary of State for India appeared totally ignorant of its merits when I had the honour of an audience in December following. Month after month passed over without the arrival of the expected order, and

11*

212 HOPES DEFERRED.

the Meer's hopes of justice began to droop, though his fidelity remained unshaken. Such was the line of conduct pursued towards an old and much-devoted ally, — a line of conduct quite umvorthy of a great Government, and as impolitic as unjust. More especially im- politic too at a time when fidelity in a native prince, under the vast temptations that beset him during the insurrection in India, was a rare virtue, and certainly entitled all those who were staunch at that fearful crisis to the highest consideration. I remained with Meer Ali Moorad till a medical officer certified that to continue longer in that fearful climate might cost me my life. It was that climate of which Sir Charles Napier says, '^ I am wasting life in this climate of death ; it dries up the European frame like the sand of the desert." Two and a half years have now elapsed since Meer Ali Moorad quitted England, and nothing has yet been settled regarding his case. Some of his friends are thus led to suppose that sinister influences have been at work in the Supreme Council to obstruct the course of justice. Such things have occurred before, and ]\leer Ali Moorad has never been a favourite with the

SIR CHARLES NAPIER. 213

Calcutta Board, as shown by their treatment of his claims on a former occasion. After the conclusion of the Truckee campaign, in which His Highness rendered important services, Sir Charles Napier forwarded to the Governor-Ge- neral, for confirmation, the draft of a treaty between the British Government and Meer Ali Moorad, but even so high a functionary as the Governor of Sindh could not obtain a reply of any kind. Here is what His Excellency in- dignantly remarked on such treatment : —

'^ For two years have I tried to get an an- swer confirming or abolishing my treaty with Ali Moorad, and I still remain without even a notice."

And thus ao^ain writes Sir Charles : — " Ali Moorad is so angry at the treaty not being settled, that the affair is doing great harm, and I am placed in the awkward posi- tion of appearing to have thrown upon a pre- tended letter my own wish to break off". This a native prince, of course, attributes to my desire to do him mischief, and doubts our faith altogether. At the same time, all sorts of reports are spread about the Ameer's re- storation, which would endanger his safety.

214 ANNEXATION OF NAGPORE.

Very weak policy this, driving to cnmit}^ a frontier prince, who Avas and is willing to be ours body and soul. And it hurts that con- fidence in British faith, which Lord Ellen- borough and myself have so earnestly sought to establish in those countries."

Of course, it must hurt that confidence, and it is conduct such as this that has estranged from us the people of India ; in fact, almost all the native princes have been thus estranged from us by our own arrogance, self-sufficiency, and oppression; and in too many instances of late years we have broken faith and tram- pled upon treaties in the most flagrant manner ; I say of late years, because, in former days, the word of an Englishman was considered by the natives as inviolable. Alas, that it should no longer be so, but such is unhappily the case, and who can wonder at it? having such facts before them as the Marquis of Dal- housie's seizure and confiscation, in 1854, of the Nagpore state, producing a revenue of nearly half-a-million sterling, and forcibly seiz- ing and selling jewels and other property to the amount of one million. This annexation was resolved on, declared the Governor-General,

ANNEXATION OF JHANSI. 215

because '' the Eajah had died, and had de- liberately abstained from adopting an heir;" further, '' tliat his widow had adopted no suc- cessor," and that therefore ''the State of Nag- pore, conferred by the British Government, in 1818, on the Eajah and his heirs, had re- verted to the British Government on the death of the Rajah without any heir." Lord Dal- housie thus arrived at the conclusion that "justice and custom and precedent left the British Government unfettered to decide as it thought best." It may be assumed from this that if such adoption had taken place, Lord Dalhousie would have recognised it. If so, however, how comes it that His Lordship refused to recognise the right of succession in the case of the young Rajah of Jhansi, who had been duly adopted by the late Rajah [who died in November, 1853], in the presence of the assistant political agent at Jhansi and other functionaries, yet the State of Jhansi shared the same fate as Nagpore? It is true that the late Rajah of Nagpore had neglected to adojDt an heir, but, immediately after his death, the wishes of the senior widoAV, Arna Poorna Bhaco, re- garding tlie adoption of a successor, were

21 G ISWUNT RAO AHEER RAO.

made known to the British Resident by Her Highness Banka Bhaee, grandmother to the late Rajah, who stated that their near relative, Iswunt Rao Aheer Rao, had always been considered by the late Maharajah as his successor, and was looked upon as such by the officers of the Durbar and the people generally. The Rajah died on the 11th of December, and on the 21st of the same month Colonel Lowe, a member of the Supreme Council, added a note on the Minute of that date in reference to the succession, and the Resident, in making his report, said, with reference to the qualifications of Iswimt Rao Aheer Rao, ''He is 18 years of age, reads Persian and writes Mahrattah ; he is amiable in disposition and sensible ; not apparently possessing brilliant talents, but tractable; his constitution seems delicate, but he has not suifered from any serious illness for the last three years. He is unmarried, and would decidedly be preferred by the mass of the courtiers to any other youth for the Musnud, whether given to him by adoption or grant from the Company."

After the death of the Rajah, their High- nesses Banka Bhaee and his widows repeatedly

MR MANSELL. 217

addressed the Government, urging the right of adoption, and protesting against the forcible annexation of the state of Nagpore to tlie British territories, and the seizure and sale of their personal property, but without effect ; though their Highnesses deputed a Wukeel to Calcutta, and subsequentl}^ despatched three Wukeels to England. Thus the plea of Lord Dalhousie for the annexation of Nagpore was a false one, and no Englishman can read with- out shame the manner in which that nefarious act of spoliation was carried out. Mr Mansell, the Resident at Nagpore, was too high-minded a man for the dirty work required of him, and resigned the office, it is said, in disgust, being succeeded by a functionary who subjected those unhappy princesses, the aged grand- mother and widows of the late Rajah, to the cruellest indignities and humiliations, under which the principal widow, Arna Poorna Bhaee, shoi*tly sunk. Their most trusted servants and advisers, though men of rank and family, were summarily committed by the new commissioner to the common jail, and arbitrarily subjected to close confinement. The privacy of the ladies was invaded by a Eurojpean officer being

218 THE BANKA BHAEE.

directed by the same functionary to take up liis residence in the palace, wherein guards were placed to overawe and control their ac- tions, thereby rendering them prisoners in their own apartments. Such were the indigni- ties offered to Her Highness Banka Bhaee, the aged grandmother, and the widows of the Maharajah of Nagpore, the faithful ally of the British Government.

These facts, being made known to their Wu- keels in England, were duly set forth in a me- morial to the Court of Directors. This brought matters to a crisis, as no sooner had the memorial reached Nagpore for transmission through the prescribed channels, than such threats were employed as frightened the Maha- ranees into recalling their representatives from England. Thus matters remained till 1857, when the whole of our north-western provinces were in open rebellion, and a handful of Eng- lishmen struggling against fearful odds. But Nagpore remained tranquil, for the Banka Bhaee, a woman of masculine energy of charac- ter and all-powerful influence in the state, which, as Regent, she had long ruled, was fully aware of the vastness of our resources, and felt

PRIVILEGE OF ADOPTION. 219

convinced that we sliould eventually recover our supremacy. Her influence was therefore em- ployed in the cause of order, thereby rendering the most inestimable services to the British Go- vernment, but she died at length without any reward, or even recognition of them. For this, I blame not the Government so much as I blame the commissioner at Nagpore for his culj)able silence on the Banka Bhaee's invaluable ser- vices, as, had they been properly represented by him, there can be no doubt but that the Govern- ment would have shown their appreciation of them long ere this. Better late than never, though, and it is satisfactory to learn that com- missioner Plowden has been removed, and his successor empowered, it is said, to recognise Iswunt Rao Aheer Rao, as the adopted son of the late Rajah, and to give him the titular prin- cipality of Nagpore, Avith a large pension. To make the best of it, however, this will be but partial justice, and that too after six years' delay. It would seem indeed that the authorities in India are at length beginning to discover the bad policy of Lord Dalhousie's measures, as late accounts state that Lord Canning has been pleas- ed to grant the privilege of adoption in the case

220 THE MAHAEAJAH OF GWALIOR.

of the Maharajah of Gwalior, and the Rajahs of Cherharee and Rewah and two other chiefs.

The Governor- General, it is stated, held a Durbar at Agra, which was attended by His Highness Sindiah, the Maharajah of Gwalior, who never swerved from his loyalty through the whole of the insurrection, though his own personal safety was endangered by his mutin- ous troops. Had they indeed been as faithful to their sovereio^n as he was true to the British Government, our difficulties in central India would have been greatly lessened, for the troops of the Gwalior contingent were about the most formidable of our foes in that quarter. As it was, indeed, we derived most essential benefit from the Maharajah's loyalty during the late crisis, as His Highness' example was a tower of strength to us, by encouraging the Rajahs of Putteeala, Indore, Joudpore, Jeypore, and others, to a like course, whereas if Sindiah had turned, the probability is that most of the other Hindoo princes would have joined against us. Thus His Highness well deserves all the honours and rewards that have been showered upon him. '^ Lands to the annual value of £30,000 sterling have been added to his territory ; he is allowed to

REWARDS TO SINDIAH. 221

increase tlie strength of his army ; arrears due from him to the Government on accoimt of assigned districts have been remitted ; and henceforth no payment is to be claimed from him when the proceeds of those districts fall short of the smn formerly stipulated." But the most important concession, and that which, I am sure, will be most highly appreciated of any by the Hindoo princes of all India, is the con- cession of the privilege of adoption which the Viceroy thus publicly announced in Durbar : '' I have already," said His Lordship, '' told your Highness that if unhappily lineal heirs should fail you, the Government will see with pleasure youi- adoption of a successor accord- ing to the rules and traditions of your family. Your Highness and all your Highness' subjects may be sure that it is the earnest desire of the paramount power that the loyal and princely house of Sindiah shall be perpetuated^ and flourish."

The Maharanee of Jhansi has no claims upon British sympathy, by reason of the brutal mas- sacre committed with her sanction, if not under her own eyes, in 1857, but that in no wise affects the question of our injustice towards

222 SOUBAHDAR RAMCHUND RAO.

her in 1854 ; when upon the death of her hus- band, Gungadhur Rao, without heirs of his own body, the Government of India peremptorily refused to acknowledge her adopted son, Da- madhur Rao, as heir; and, as in the case of Nagpore, at once unscrupulously seized upon and annexed the territory of the Jhansi State, producing a revenue of £60,000 sterliug per annum, and in lieu thereof assigned a pension of £6000 a year, for the use of the widowed princess and her adopted son. The prede- cessors of the deceased Maharajah had, more- over, for upwards of half a century, been so distinguished for fidelity, that in 1832 Lord Wil- liam Bentinck, then Governor-General of India, in consideration of the faithful attachment that had always been manifested by the Jhansi family towards the British rule, conferred on the Soubahdar Ramchund Rao the dignity and title of Maharajah, with the privilege of using the English flag. By the above one act of spoliation, in defiance of all right, Lord Dal- housie added £54,000 per annimi to the rent- roll of the British Government, but at what a sacrifice of British honour !

Nearly sixty years *ago the Duke of Welling-

BRITISH PRESTIGE. 223

ton thus expressed himself regardmg the main- tenance of our good faith with the natives of India: — ''I would sacrifice Gwalior or any frontier ten times over, to preserve our charac- ter for scrupulous good faith;" and again said the Duke, '' I would sacrifice every political consideration ten times over rather than sanc- tion the slightest infraction upon British good faith." Well, indeed, would it have been for the interests of England if such had been the rule of our conduct of late years, for the Indian insurrection would then never, I believe, have occurred. Apart from all moral considerations, and viewing the matter as one of policy alone, the great Duke's sentiments, as here set forth, are those of a profound statesman anxious for the permanence of a mighty empire, an empire long said to be one of opinion, and that opinion too might never have been shaken, had we not of late years, by repeated breaches of faith, destroyed the prestige that our greatest Indian statesmen had, for nearly a century, so success- fully maintained.

The Marquis of Dalhousie is an able man of business, but I deprecate his policy on the sub- ject of annexation, as a monstrous injustice to

224 CARNATIC STIPENDIARIES.

those affected ; and fraught with danger to our rule, by leading the people of India to con- sider us, from such actions, devoid of honour, principle, and truth. If I am right on this point, and my opinion is borne out by those of the most eminent of our Indian statesmen. Lord Dalhousie's measures must be condemned as totally at variance with that broad-based and upright course of policy that ought to have been our pride, as it was om' interest, to main- tain : but to our subject. The case of the Car- natic Stipendiaries is another story of great wrong, the exercise of might against right, exhibiting the most cruel breach of faith to- wards the nobility of the Carnatic. Yet, though their Wukeel, or agent, has been for eight years seeking justice in England, that justice is still withheld. So glaring, however, has been our breach of faith in the case of the Stipendiaries, that a late Secretary to the Board of Control, when presiding at a meeting of all the Carnatic Stipendiaries in Madras, expressed his sympathy for their wrongs, and declared that the recital of them caused him to feel shame at being an Englishman. Their unhappy story is in this wise : — Upon the death of the Nawab Oomdut

SEIZUEE OF THE JAGHEEES. 225

ool Oomrali in 1801, the Government of Ma- dras seized upon tlie jagheers, or freeholds of the Nawab's relations, amounting in value to 2,13,911 star pagodas, or about £74,868 ster- ling, and in lieu of such freehold estates as- signed pensions, in most instances of far inferior value to their estates, whereby the Government at once profited to the amount of 13,857 star pagodas, or about £-1:850 sterling per annum. The amount of stipends originally fixed was duly paid to the persons entitled to them as long as they lived, and their offspring suc- ceeded to such stipends without question, and as a matter of right. The Madras Government then commenced reducing them, and has con- tinued doing so with each generation, until in 1850 their aggregate annual amount was only 85,714 star pagodas, or about £30,000 sterling. Whilst the amount of pensions has been too thus diminished, the number of re- cipients has largely augmented. Thus all are embarrassed in circumstances, and some in ac- tual destitution, for it is a notorious fact that several descendants of the last Carnatic sove- reigns arc starving on one rupee, or two shil- lings, per mensem. By the 9th article of the

VOL. II. 15

226 HAFIZ.

Treaty of 1801 the Government charged itself '^ with a suitable provision for the families of the two preceding Nawabs, such to be dis- tributed in the manner that the Nawab just acknowledged should deem proper." On the 29tli September, 1801, Lord Olive fixed by a minute of council the amount of the provision which each stipendiary should receive, and even that minute has been set aside, without the least regard to good faith, by the reduction of pensions. One of the sufferers by this, Hafiz Sudr ool Islam Khan Bahader, has been eight years in England, where his gentlemanly man- ners and irreproachable conduct have gained for him troops of friends and well-wishers. Hafiz, I am proud to say, has been my own personal friend for upwards of twenty years. He was appointed by Lord Elphinstoue, in 1840, Justice of the Peace and member of the Grand Jury at Madras, but having leisure hours devoted them to the translation of legal and historical works, which met the approval of the best judges ; and since his arrival in Eng- land in 1852 has so assiduously devoted him- self to the study of law, as to elicit most flat- tering testimonials to his qualifications from

THE KING OF OUDII. 227

Mr Serjeant Atkinson and others ; so it is to be hoped that on his return to India services so valuable as Hafiz can render will be made available to Government in a post suitable to his merit and qualifications.

The case of Prince Azeem Jah, Nawab of the Carnatic, exhibits another instance of the most monstrous injustice, but of late years what native prince has been otherwise than so treated ?

The deposal of the King of Oudh and an- nexation of his comitry has been the last and crowning act of these numerous State robberies, for I can apply no milder term to the acts of spoliation committed by Lord Dalhousie.

But I am wandering from the wrongs of Meer Ali Moorad, who certainly deserved bet- ter treatment than he has had from those whom he had so faithfully served in perilous emergen- cies. Such would, however, seem to be our ordinary course of policy with the Princes of India, and to it, combined with other causes, may, possibly, be attributed the late insurrec- tion in India. Here is what Sir Charles Napier prophetically said on the subject : — " The final

15*

228 Napier's prophetic warning.

result of our Indian conquests no man can pre- dict, but if we take the people by the hand we may count on ruling India for ages. Justice, rigid justice, even severe justice, will work miracles ; it has its basis in the desire of man for protection against cruelty, and cannot be shaken. India is safe if so ruled. But such deeds are done as make one wonder that we hold it a year." In connection with the same subject, and referring to some desertions from a Bengal regiment, which were evidently the re- sult of great mismanagement and laxity of dis- cipline, as long since declared by officers of Her Majesty's service. Sir Charles Napier observes : — " My opinion will be disregarded, and I will give no more, but the present system will have a bad result some fine day, as sure as God made Moses, and the Court of Directors w411 sell the grandest empire the world ever saw."

The fact, I believe, is, that our S3^stem of government of late years has been one con- tinued great mistake; our military system in Bengal has undeniably been so, and such was it considered and pronounced by Sir Charles Napier years before the insurrection, for when

CAUSES OF THE INSURKECTION. 229

the mutiny of the 41st Native Infantry took place, he had information that twenty-four other regiments were in league with them.

The cause of the insurrection of 1857 seems still unexplained to general satisfaction ; in my own opinion it arose from our continued mis- government, our grasping policy of annexation, our repeated breaches of faith, and the humilia- tion of native princes by British functionaries, even a Governor- General himself, who thought it not beneath his own high station to tell an Indian sovereign that he considered him '' as the dust under his own feet." The only redeeming feature in this affair being that the paramount authority in India was so ashamed of what he had thus written, that the despatch, in its true and original form, was never allowed to see daylight, the obnoxious passage being expunged before it was printed. To the above causes we may add the laxity of discipline in the native army of Bengal.

It so happened that Mr Layard, of Nineveh celebrity, was at Bombay, on his Indian tour, just at the time when Meer Ali Moorad re- turned to Sindh, and His Highness, being asked by that gentleman to what he attributed the

230 CAUSES OF THE INSUREECTION.

Indian insurrection, distinctly stated that in his opinion it had been partly caused by the system of annexation which had been of late years introduced, and partly by the want of respect shown to native princes by Englishmen of high station in India. The annexations that have been carried out have alienated from us all India, for such acts cause us to be looked upon as rajoacious foreigners, utterly without principle. Those too who have not suffered from our rapacity are by no means assured that their turn will not come soon. Not one of those princes considers himself secure. Those acquainted with Indian affairs and the sentiments of the native princes know 'that the real cause of the Putteala Eajah not having come to England, as he proposed in 1855, after sending confidential officers to make preparations for his accommodation, was the distrust that he felt of Lord Dalhousie's good faith in regard to his territory. This is not surprising, since some of those princes who have been most faithful during the late crisis have not yet received common justice at our hands ; take, for example, the case of His Highness the Nizam, who is still, I believe, deprived of the

FEELINGS OF THE PEOPLE. 231

districts tliat we seized upon as security for his debt to the British Government for arrears of pay to the Hyderabad force, now forming the contingent.

I believe, moreover, that the maddening sense of despair, arising from an utter hopelessness of redress in all appeals to the Home Govern- ment against the acts of Lord Dalhousie and his council, was another main cause of the late insurrection.

The atrocities committed during the late mutiny are quite unaccountable to those ac- quainted with and appreciative of the extra- ordinary and heroic devotion to their officers displayed on countless occasions by the native troops of every Presidency, no less th'an the tender care by native servants of European ladies and children, and sick and suffering masters, in many cases, moreover, returning good for evil, as the least impatient amongst the latter often employ rough language towards servants for trifling faults, if possessed of suffi- cient self-command to abstain even from per- sonal violence towards them. Of tlie two, moreover, I believe that a native of birth would feel less hurt at a blow than the dis-

232 TREATMENT OF THE NATIVES.

gustlngly indecent terms of reproach in refer- ence to his female relations, occasionally em- ployed by the coarse-minded amongst om' countrymen. Thirty-five years' experience of the natives of India, of all castes, and in every grade of society, enables me to speak confidently from personal experience of their good qualities ; at the same time, I am prepared to admit that both Hindoos and Mahomedans are very excitable in temperament and re- vengeful in disposition, as exemplified in the murder of many officers, within my own re- collection, under the influence of real or im- agined wrongs, but I believe that in every case the murderer considered himself an in- jured man. The obstinate perseverance of Government in the matter of the greased cart- ridges, moreover, furnished designing men, who had long watched for an opportunity, with a tangible excuse for arousing the religious prejudices of their countrymen, as in the case of the 3rd Bengal cavalry, who were thus in- cited to disobedience, and that disobedience, under the phrensy of religious excitement, speedily ripened into mutiny, murder, and general revolt ; but even in that very regiment

DEVOTION OF THREE BROTHERS. 233

there were noble examples of fidelity and devoted attacliment to certain officers and their families, even at the very height of that frantic excitement which led to the committal of such frightful atrocities in the Bengal army. I believe, moreover, that those atrocities were committed very generally by fanatics inflamed with religious phrensy and drunk with blood. Yet even those very atrocities were scarcely more sanguinary than some committed, after the storming of cities in the Peninsula, as recorded by that great military historian whose death we have had so recently to deplore. For my own part, too, I do not believe that any army in the world contains men possessing more highly chivalric feelings than some of those in Her Majesty's Indian army. As an instance I shall here relate an anecdote of the devoted conduct of three brothers, as nearly as I can recollect, in the words of my inform- ant. Colonel Cavenagh, a distinguished officer of the Bengal army, and now Governor of the Straits' Settlements : —

'''■ In the regiment of Irregular Cavalry to which I belonged we had three brothers, the eldest was a Jemadar, the second standard-

234 BRAVERY OF A SOWAR.

bearer, and the youngest a private sowar. On tlie morning of the action in which I lost my leg, the regiment was so much weak- ened by detachments that we had only about 120 sowars present. A battery was at some distance in our front, against which we were advancing, when another battery opened upon our flank, a shot from which took my horse in the side, which was in the act of falling dead under me, when a second shot shat- tered my leg to atoms. Our doctor at once dismounted, and, with the assistance of his orderly, the youngest of the three brothers, put me into a dooly, which took me to the rear. He then, as I afterwards heard from himself, remounted, and was about to follow the regiment, which had got far in advance, when his orderly, remonstrating, said, 'Don't attempt it. Sahib, or those men whom you see lying on the ground, and who have only so thrown themselves for the cavalry to pass over them, will murder us ; come with me and join that troop of Horse Artillery on the flank, where we shall be in safety.' The doctor did so, and presently lost siglit of his orderly.

GALLANTEY OF THE STANDARD-BEARER. 235

Meantime the regiment had kept on advanc- ing, but so terrible was the flanking fire, and so many men and horses had been struck down, that the rest began to appear unsteady ; seeing which the eldest brother, rushing to the front, turned round in his saddle, and calling out to the men, said in a furious tone, ' What, you will desert your officers, will you ? but I will stick to them,' and instantly placed himself between the European officers in front. The regi- ment was then nearing the enemy, and the standard-bearer, holding his standard aloft, cried out, ^ If you desert your officers you will lose your standard,' and as they charged up darted it in amongst the enemy, him- self following it sword in hand ; every sowar did the like, and the enemy were sabred in a moment. The poor standard-bearer how- ever lost an eye, which was blown out by the explosion of one of the enemy's muskets, though he was providentially untouched by the ball. After the action one of the first amongst the wounded whom the doctor saw was his own orderly, with a shattered arm. ' How came you to leave me,' inquired the doctor, ' and how did this occur ? ' 'Oh, Sahib,'

236 OUE FUTURE IN INDIA.

replied the poor fellow, ' it was my duty, after leaving you in safety, to follow and join my regiment; I did so, and lost my arm in a charge.' "

The foregoing is given, as nearly as I can recollect, in the very words of the distin- guished soldier who related to me the anecdote ; and truly three finer fellows than those three brothers could not be found in any service in the world !

Warfare in India is seemingly for the present at an end, the insurrection having been put down by physical force; but I do not consider that tranquillity is in reality restored, for the minds of the masses are still untranquillized, and their hostility of heart is still unallayed. No attempt at further insurrection need how- ever be feared, as the natives are aware of the enormous European force ; fully appointed and skilfully disposed throughout the length and breadth of the land, and held in perfect readiness to crush any attempt at insurrection. They must consequently be perfectly sensible of the futility of attempting it, and I do not believe that it will be attempted, imless a foreign foe should appear on the scene. But

FINANCE. 237

were India invaded by a Russian or French army, the flame of insurrection would burst forth from Peshawur to Cape Comorin ; such a flame too as would be in all ^probability far more difficult to quench than the last. At any rate, however, India must be worse than valueless if we continue to hold it on the present terms. Heretofore the cost of govern- ing India has been about 30 millions sterling per annum, and, the gross revenue hardly amounting to so much, the deficit had to be made up by loans. But the present deficit is one of millions, owing to the failure of revenue, and the vast European force that it has been found necessary to maintain. The functionary appointed to introduce financial reform in India is known to be a man of much talent, but being totally without Indian ex- perience, he must necessarily be for a con- siderable time completely in the hands of subordinates.

The Indian debt at present amounts to nearly 70 millions sterling, and the last financial report exhibited a very unpromising future. The Go- vernment has squeezed the population till no- thing more can be obtained, for the taxes here-

238 TAXATION.

tofore have been burdensome and oppressive in the last degree. Lord Canning has attemj)ted to introduce certain partial remedies, productive of little benefit to the State, and which have caused profound irritation, from the unfairness with which the screw has been applied. The Government had become so embarrassed that it was absolutely necessary to adopt some means for recruiting its finances ; and those who pro- jected the obnoxious license bill seem to have carefully guarded against its pressure, in"any way, on that section of the community best able to contribute to the necessities of the State. There can be but one opinion on the injustice of a tax so partial in its operation, and the public of each Presidency has unmis- takably exhibited its feeling on the subject. The state of the finances has now arrived at such a pitch of deficit and bankruptcy, that the matter can be blinked no longer. The wasteful expenditure of the Government hereto- fore must at once cease ; the first step to be taken should be the immediate reduction of the monstrous salaries of the Civil Service, some of which are equal in amount to those of Her Majesty's Ministers in England. The higher

INDIAN SALARIES. 239

military officers might also bear some reduc- tion of salary. The allowances of the lower grades I would not see touched. AVhy should the British officials of Madras receive salaries four or five times the amount of those per- taining to similar offices under the Imperial Government at Pondicherry ? Look too at the satisfactory working of our own government in Ceylon, where economy is studied without at all impairing efficiency. I am quite aware that these remarks will be very unpalatable to the services, but that can't be helped, as if allow- ances be diminished, expenditure must be lessened, and luxuries curtailed. Hitherto we appear to have neglected financial matters alto- gether, and pursued a reckless course of ter- ritorial annexation, although the revenues of the States so annexed, do not cover the charges thereby entailed, and needless and unjusti- fiable wars have been undertaken, to the de- triment of our finances and injury to our fair fame.

I rejoice to see that the Governor of Madras has given his attention to the important sub- ject of finance, and an excellent minute was not long since published on the advantages that

240 INDIAN FINANCE.

would result from the introduction into India of the English system, which requires esti- mates to be prepared by each department of its expenditure during the ensuing year. Sir Charles Trevelyan's views on the subject have been fully concurred in by the Accountant- General ; and the Commander-in-Chief is per- suaded that the most favourable results may be fairly looked for, in which the other mem- bers of Government fully agree, and have re- commended the submission of all the papers on the subject of adopting the English system of finance in India to the Military Finance Commission for their consideration and report. On the second reading of the India Bill, in June, 1858, Mr Bright, in a most power- ful and eloquent speech, observed that '' the immense Empire that has been conquered is too vast for management ; its base is in decay, and during the last twelve months it has appeared to be tottering to its fall." Mr Bright has no experience of India, but his speech, to my thinking, is fraught with wisdom, as it is replete with noble and generous sentiments. He would see our Indian Empire drawn comparatively within a

MR. bright's opinion. 2-11

compact ring-fence, instead of being spread over the entire Peninsula. So would I, be- cause I feel assured that the safety of that Empire depends on its concentration rather than on its extent. In fact, the greatest and wisest statesmen that ever held office in India have placed on record their sentiments as highly adverse to territorial extension. For my own part, judging the future from the past, looking at the rise and fall of Empires, Greece and Rome, and more re- cently that magnificent Empire created by the Great Napoleon, I come to the conclusion that each step we advance beyond a certain point in the extension of frontier, is a step towards our own downfal !

Mr Bright, an eminently practical states- man, would " abolish the office of Governor- General of India, as the post is too high, his power is too great, and over this officer almost no real control is exercised ; in fact, scarcely any control can be exercised over an officer of such high position ; and that the duties of Governor- General are far greater than any human being can fulfil." '^ Inevit- ably all those duties tliat devolve on every

VOL. II. IG

242 INDEPENDENT PEESIDENCIES.

good government must," says Mr Brightj " be neglected by the Governor-General of India, however wise, capable, and honest he may be in the performance of his duties, because the duties laid upon him are such as no man now living, or who ever lived, can or could jDroperly sustain." Mr Bright

would have India divided into five separate Presidencies, the governments of which should be perfectly equal in rank and salary, and completely independent of each other. The duties of each government should be strictly confined to its own Presidency ; and each government should correspond direct with the Secretary of State for India. The army of each Presidency to be kept distinct, as at present. The wisdom of this arrange- ment has been fully proved during the late insurrection, for had the armies of Madras and Bombay been incorporated with that of Bengal, as was proposed some years back, it is pretty certain that the mutiny would have extended throughout all three. That far-seeing statesman, Sir Thomas Munro, per- haps contemplated the possibility of such an event, when he so strenuously opposed the

GOVERNMENTS OF THE PRESIDENCIES. 243

measure of incorporation. The governor of each Presidency should be assisted by a council, not constituted as at present, but an open council. '' What we want," says Mr Bright, ''is to make the governments of the Presidencies, governments for the people of the Presidencies ; not governments for the civil servants of the Crown, but for the non-official mercantile classes from England who settle there, and for the 20,000 or 30,000 of natives in each Presidency." Mr Bright then goes on to show the well-working of the system at Ceylon, and he would ''see the council of each Presidency composed in part of the officials of Government, in part of the non-official Europeans resident in the Presi- dency, and two or three, at least, of the intelligent natives of the Presidency, in whom the people would have some confi- dence. Thus would the Government be united with the governed, and in such a union of interests is safety alone to be found. India should be governed not for a handful of Englishmen, not for the civil service, but for the good of the people themselves."

By the arrangements that Mr Bright thus

16*

244 RESPONSIBILITY OF GOVEENORS.

proposes, a far more efficient government than at present exists would be established in India. The centralization system has worked ill, I believe, in all ways, as involving re- ferences on almost every subject to the para- mount authority, thereby proving obstructive of all advancement and bringing everything to a stand. "In lieu of this we should have independent governors responsible alone to Her Majesty's Secretary of State for India. In each Presidency would exist a rivalry for good in all matters of police, education, public works, and all that can stimulate industry." " To accomplish this," says Mr Bright, " we want a new feeling in England and an entirely new policy in India." He further told the House what he thinks the Prime Minister should do, in the following words : '' He ought to choose for his Secretary of State for India a man who cannot be ex- celled by any other man in his cabinet, or in his party, for capacity, for honesty, for atten- tion to his duties, and for knowledge adapted to the particular office to which he is appointed. If any Prime Minister appoint an inefficient man to such an office, he will be a traitor to

SELECTION OF GOVERNOES. 245

the tlirone of England. That officer, ap- pointed for the qualities I have just indicated, should, with equal scrupulousness and con- scientiousness, make the appointments, whether of the Governor- General or, if that office be abolished, of the Governors of the Presidencies of India. Those appointments should not be rewards for old men simply because such men have done good service when in their prime, nor should they be rewards for mere party service ; but they should be appointments given under a feeling that interests of the very highest moment, connected with this country, depend on those great offices in India being properly filled up. The same principles should run through the v/liole system of government ; for unless there be a very high degree of virtue in all these appointments, and unless our great object be to govern India well, and to exalt the name of England in the eyes of the whole native population, all that we have recourse to in the way of machinery will be of very little use indeed.

" I admit that this is a great work ; I admit also that the further I go into the consider- ation of this question the more I feel that

246 DIFFICULTIES BEFORE US.

it is too large for me to grapple witli, and that every step we take in it should be taken as if we were men walldng in the dark. We have, however, certain great principles to guide us, and by their light we may make steps in advance, if not fast, at any rate sure. But we start from an unfortunate position. We start from a platform of conquest by force of arms extending over a hundred years. There is nothing in the world worse than the sort of foundation from which we start. The great- est genius who has shed lustre on the literature of this country has said, ' There is no sure foundation set on blood ; ' and it may be our unhappy fate in regard to India to demon- strate the truth of that saying. We are always subjugators, and we must be viewed with hatred and suspicion. I say we must look at the thing as it is, if we are to see our exact posi- tion, what our duty is, and what chance there is of our retaining India, and of govern- ing it for the advantage of its people. Our difficulties have been enormously increased by the revolt. The people of India have only seen England in its worst form in that coun- try. They have seen it in its military power,

INDIANS IN ENGLAND. 247

its exclusive civil service, and in the supremacy of a handful of foreigners. When natives of India come to this country they are delighted with England and Englishmen. They find themselves treated with a kindness, a consider- ation, a respect, to which they are wholly strangers in their own country, and they cannot understand how it is that men who are so just, so attentive to them here, some- times, indeed too often, appear to them in a different character in India." That this is only a correct picture no one will venture to deny, though some may attempt to extenuate the haughty bearing of Indian officials towards the natives in India. There are persons moreover holding a high position in the London circles, who never think their crowded parties com- plete without the presence of an Indian gen- tleman, who would perchance scarcely have offered a chair to that same gentleman when they held office in India. The members of the civil service are in this respect far more exclusive than military men, but even the latter rarely associate with natives. This, no doubt, arises in a great degree from the social gulf that separates native gentlemen in India

248 ENGLISH EXCLUSHTINESS IN INDIA.

from ourselves in society. Here our Indian friends A., B., and C, are as well pleased to join our family circles at any meal as we are to receive them, but those very gentlemen would not venture to do the same in India, through apprehension alone of offending the prejudices of their own countrymen, most of whom would, I believe, be shocked to learn that they had eaten at the table of Europeans, and I am mistaken if their doing so would not lead to a case of '' HooTcah, pmvnee, hundj^ in plain Eng- lish, that our friends would be excluded from the society of their own people and relatives. An Indian gentleman, Hafiz Sudr ool Islam Khan Bahader, however, declares that I am wrong in my assertion '' that if the English had been as cordial in their reception of native gentlemen in India as they are in London, the social barrier complained of would long ere this have been broken down ; but that they are not so, and, moreover, says he, another difficulty exists. We Moslems do not object to eat food prepared by a Christian cook, but we do object to eat that prepared by a Pariah, who is gener- ally dirty both in person and habits, and has no religion, Avhilst Christians have the book."

NEW POLICY. 249

The mail of the 12th December brings in- telligence that a new policy has been inaugm^- atecl in Oudh, and I rejoice at it as a step in the right direction. The Governor- General, acting on the recommendation of the Chief Commissioner, has appointed half a dozen of the most intelligent and influential of the Ta- lookdars of Oudh, acting collectors of the re- venue, responsible only to the Commissioner and his deputy for the territories of which they are the proprietors. The success of this judicious experiment must entirely depend on the quali- fications of the parties selected to fill those ap- pointments. If the choice be judicious, the plan will, I have no doubt, work well, as show- ing the native chiefs that we wish to identify their interests with our own ; but if favour and afi'ection have at all influenced those appoint- ments, the measm-e will be completely neu- tralized.

Some years ago the late Mr John Sullivan, a very liberal-minded member of the civil service, who was a sincere well-wisher to the native community, procured the appointment of his head Sheristadar to a situation that had never been held previously by any but a European

250 DEWAN OF TRAVANCORE.

gentleman of the covenanted service. So long as Mr Sullivan remained in the comitry, the result fulfilled his expectations ; but no sooner had he quitted the shores of India than in- triofues w^ere set at work to ruin the native officer, and, I was told, with fatal effect. As to the qualifications of natives to fill such ap- pointments, I laugh at the notion that they are unequal to so responsible a charge, for who really are the actual collectors of districts? The European officials go out on jumma hmiclee^ attended by a posse of belted peons, writers, and other small fry; but the higher native officials are the people who actually do the out- door work ; as the managers of their offices, not the European collectors themselves, very ge- nerally conduct the Cutchery business within doors ! Such men as the late Eammohun Roy and Dwarkanauth Tagore, both of whom were well known in England, are specimens of what India can produce, even under our depressing policy. In fact, I believe that few countries have ever produced two more talented men than these ; and the young dewan to the Rajah of Travancore, who was distinguished in the Madras University as the first mathematician

POOKNEAH. 251

of the year, is, I am told, a man of pre-eminent ability. He was fortunate in finding a field for the display of his talents, or he might never have risen beyond the situation of a common office clerk.

The Indian despatches of the Duke of Wel- lington bear testimony to the capacity, intelli- gence, and trustworthiness of numerous natives, who had acted with and assisted him in his In- dian campaign. The great Duke speaks with admiration of the diplomatic talents of Govind Rao, and of the unimpeachable integrity of Bisnapunt, but above all of Poorneah, a name known to history as the Regent of Mysore, dur- ing the minority of the Rajah, and who had been previously Prime Minister to Hyder Ali and Tippoo Sultaim. To Poorneah the illustri- ous Duke presented his picture, in testimony of the high sense which he entertained of his ad- mirable administration of the affairs of Mysore. I have met with many natives of first-rate na- tural ability, though generally of defective edu- cation; but with the educational advantages that are now open to the natives of India, I feel as- sured that if they once get admitted to a fair par- ticipation with Europeans in the Government of

252 SIR CHARLES NAPIER's POLICY.

tlieir own country, tlie hope of such advancement will bring to light talents of no common order. The natives of India possess plenty of ambi- tion, naturally, though the last sixty years of our depressing rule has tended much to ex- tinguish hope in their bosoms ; but the policy which the Grreeks and Romans practised with success — as did, at a later period, the great Eastern conqueror, Tymour Limg, or Tamer- lane, namely, that of admitting the natives of conquered provinces to the free and full par- ticipation of the rights and privileges of the conquerors— may be expected to work equally w^ell in the present day with the natives of India. In Sindh, Sir Charles Napier practised the like policy, '' for while the regeneration of the poorer classes was urged forward, the just claims of the high-born people of the land were not overlooked as though a conquered race," Sir Charles "regarded them only as British sub- jects, and resolved to open for all places of trust and dignity, without objection to colour or religion, demanding only qualification." Mahomed Toorab, one of the greatest Surdars who fought at Meeanee, was made a magis- trate at his own request, the appointment being

COLONEL eathboene's eepoet. 253

thus justified. '' The nobles of Smdh must have the road of ambition opened to them, or they will not have their rights in the honour- able sense of my proclamation, that is, if they qualify themselves for the offices demanded. But in questions of general interest like this, even qualification should not be required before enjoyment. AYe must give first, we must turn out afterwards for incapacity. The class-rights will be thus acknowledged, while the man is removed ; and if one Beloochee gentleman be- comes a magistrate, many will qualify them- selves."

This high-minded policy, so worthy of the great man who uttered those sentiments, seems to have been fully approved by his ablest lieutenants, after Sir Charles Napier had him- self quitted the scene of his most important achievements, both military and administrative. Colonel Rathborne, in his admirable Report, with especial reference to what is due to Sur- dars of high birth and rank, would, in such cases, grant personal exemption and immimi- ties, and would restrain a system of offensive bullying and insult towards men of that status. ''In a word," says Colonel Rathborne, '' I

254 CONSIDERATE COURSE OF TOLICY.

would not allow Surdars, from mere consider- ation of tlieir rank, to set the law at defiance ; but wlien the offence was of a kind that no injury could arise from its being passed over, I think something of the rigour of the law might be dispensed with, and in carrying out the law, where its execution was unavoidable, I think the same regard should be had to their feelings, and the feelings of their families, as would be shown if a European gentleman of high rank, or his wife, or son, or daughter, had been un- fortunate enough in like manner to become amenable to our courts."

"Wliilst, however, thus advocating this con- siderate course of policy, Colonel Rathborne is decidedly hostile to any exemption. " No man," says he, " who understands breaking either men or horses, will ever worry either by ill-treatment, but once at least in the outset, in either case, it often happens that one has to show, unmistakably, which is for the futm-e to be master. There never was a Government perhaps, situated as Sir Charles Napier's was, that had so little trouble, and solely from this cause. There was not a single punishment for a political offence during the whole period that

URBANITY TOWARDS NATIVES. 255

he ruled here. The wild Belooch settled down into the quietest of men, not owing to any change of disposition, but solely because they knew their master ; and yet with all their fear of him, so kind and cordial was his manner to them, that there was not one who ever left him otherwise than delighted with the interview. His personal manner towards them charmed away, as much as it could be charmed away, the pain of conquest, and they felt, after all, it was no disgrace to be conquered by such a man." This is the kind of demeanour that we ought as far as possible to observe towards the natives of India; and those of our countrymen who have been most distinguished in either service for talent, have been equally remarkable for affability and kindness of manner towards the natives of every degree. Take, for instance, Mountstuart Elphinstone, Sir John Malcolm, Lord Metcalfe, and the much-lamented Sir Henry Lawrence, names which at once pre- sent themselves to recollection as bright ex- amples of the kind. The bearing of Sir Charles Napier was ever most urbane and courteous towards all classes of people, unless the indi- viduals were personally undeserving of con-

256 LORD ELLENBOEOUGH.

sideratioiij and in such case he expressed his senthnents in unmistakable terms, as he did at a durbar held at Lahore, when Rajah Jait Singh, a notorious traitor, presumed to seat himself next His Excellency, who at once rose and spoke his mind in somewhat strong lan- guage touching the character and antecedents of that individual.

Upon the whole, our rule in Sindh has been eminently successful, and this was entirely attri- butable to the judicious selection of public offi- cers. The manner in which Lord EUenborough dispensed his extensive patronage as Governor- General was strongly in contrast with the usual practice at that time in India ; and the like may truly be said of Sir Charles Napier, for with neither had letters of recommendation the smallest weight, unless the party well de- served advancement.

On one occasion a young gentleman arrived at Kurrachee, armed with a letter from some one high in office at home, which he presented to the General, who said, " Come and dine with me this evening, but you must not expect any- thing from that letter, or from forty such if you had them. Your prospects depend entire-

SIR BARTLE FRERE. 257

ly on your own conduct, and I shall see what stuff you are made of." This was the way to have efficient officers, and all selected by Sir Charles were thoroughly efficient, but it made personal enemies of the friends of the disap- pointed.

Sir Bartle Frere, K. C. B., the late Chief Commissioner, proved himself a first-rate man at a perilous crisis, and he had a staff worthy of their head. The measures projected by the Great Captain who added this important front- ier province to the British territory, have been in most instances carried out, notwithstanding the obstructions that were, for a time, offered by small-minded men in power. SIndli too has been singularly fortunate in falling under the rule of those, not only anxiously desirous to develope to the utmost the resources of the country, but equally so to advance its people in the scale of civilization ; for which unfor- tunately there was too much room, through the tyrannical and degrading policy of the Ameers. It is beyond my power to say that the SIndhians are happier under our Govern- ment than they were under that of the Ameers ; l.)ut I believe them to bo so, as nothing could

VOL. II. 17

258 PROSPERITY OF STNDH.

be more oppressive than their rule. I cer- tainly can declare, without fear of contradic- tion, that they are better clothed, better fed, and better taught than they ever were before. As regards the prosperity of the province, its trade has increased in sixteen years of British rule from £122,100 to upwards of two-and-a- half millions sterling. It is also upon official record that the agriculture of the province was never so extended and flourishing as during the past year. Further, we have established a strong frontier to the north-west, by our friend- ly relations with the Khan of Khelat, whose conduct is reported as marked by features of cordiality and trust in the British Government. His Highness nominally, but nominally only, holds authority over that most powerful tribe the Murrees, and, as far as men are concern- ed, he has plenty for enforcing submission, but has no pecuniary resources of his own to enable him to maintain a force in the field, should that be necessary, though that difficulty would not exist if we supplied money. Within the border, the country is peopled by those once warlike tribes, who have for thirteen years settled down into peaceful cultivators.

THE meer's loyalty. 259

on the very scene of their former predatory forays.

Such are my observations on Sindh, a most uninviting country in appearance and climate, but one that promises advantageous returns for tlie employment of European capital and European enterprise.

During the latter months of my stay at Khyrpoor, I was too unwell to attend Meer Ali Moorad in his hunting excursionSj and His Highness' hopes of obtaining justice appeared to grow fainter after the arrival of each mail without any order for the restoration of his ter- ritory, although private letters of a favourable nature occasionally reached us. The Meer's temperament is, however, so sanguine that but little sufficed to raise his spirits. He appeared to take great interest in the progress of the campaign, then at its height in Central India, and always requested me to read the papers to him. His Highness never for one moment waver- ed in his faith and loyalty, whether the accounts were favourable or otherwise ; and on my read- ing the recital of massacres of women and chil- dren, he always exj^ressed the utmost horror at such atrocities, and more than once observed

17*

260 LORD ellenborough's despatch.

that those who committed such bloody deeds would be inevitably the object of God's wrath, and their cause could not possibly prosper. I carefully translated to him Lord Ellenborough's famous Despatch to the Governor-General, wherewith he was greatly deligl^ted^ saying, '' That if even the English rule in India should ever be brought to a close, the noble sentiments expressed in that despatch would always re- main a monument to the honour of one English- man." How His Highness obtained the in- formation that reached him I cannot say, but he certainly always had very early intelligence from the seat of war, and more than once ac- quainted me with occurrences in Oudh that were not mentioned in the North- Western jour- nals till some days afterwards. At length, to- wards the middle of August, being much reduced in strength, I pressed the Meer to allow me to proceed to England, pointing out that I could be of little use to His Highness by prolonging my stay at Khyrpoor, whereas, by going direct to England, I might be able to induce his friends to exert themselves in his favour. After a few days' delay my request was granted, perhaps the more readily as Hotc Singh, the

DEPARTURE FROM KHYRPOOR. 261

Meer's Mooktyar Kar, was anxious for my departure, as he did not at all like the inquiries that he heard I was making into his conduct and practices, which were not of a nature, if popular rumour spoke truth, to bear very rigid scrutiny. So, my arrangements being made, I prepared to start by the first steamer from Suk- kur, and learning the arrival of the Laiorence^ I bade farewell to my much-esteemed companion

and friend, Mr I , parting with deep regret

from one with whom I had so long lived in the strictest intimacy. Most fortunate, indeed, shall I ever consider myself in having had for my companion a man of such rare information, ;first-rate ability, and blessed with a temper that nothing could ruffle.

I mounted my horse when the moon rose on tlie 26th of August, but only reached Roree an hour before dawn, having lost my way, through the face of the low grounds being covered with water, the inundation being then nearly at the highest. From the deputy Post-Master at Eoree, Toorab Ali Shah, I learned that the steamer would probably start that morning ; so it was of im^^ortance to cross the river at once, and no boats plying for hire until sunrise, he very

262 travellek's bungalow.

kindly accommodated me with his own, and in a few minutes I fbmid myself on the bosom of the InduSj which was then running like a mill- race, forming, indeed, a magnificent body of water, which glittered in the moonshine far as the eye could reach in a southerly direction, and fringed on the Roree bank by a belt of verdure extending down to Bubbuloo and Nautchee.

At the Traveller's Bungalow I found one soli- tary young officer, and on proceeding to the office of the Deputy Superintendent of Boats, I learned that the steamer would not start till the 30th, whereby I should, in all probability, be too late for the vessel fi'om Kurrachee to Bombay. This was provoking enough, but there was no help for it ; so, having engaged my passage, I returned to the Bungalow, where my good Ramazan soon provided me with a bath and such a breakfast as I had not enjoyed for many a day, as fresh bread, butter, and eggs were delicacies not to be met with at Meev Ali Moorad's capital. My companion in the Bunga- low was a fine young man, proceeding to join the Bombay Fusiliers at Mooltan. There is, I think, a sort of freemasonry amongst men edu-

THE COMMANDEE S CUISINE. 263

cated at public sclioolsj and as I was an Eton man, and my companion a Harrow one, we were soon intimate, and got on very well to- gether. I embarked on tlie Monday morning, and we were to have started immediately, but the anchor had got fast under a rock, and after breaking much tackle the capstan at last gave way, greatly to the annoyance of our worthy commander, from whom I learned that every kind of equipment sent out for the Indus Flotilla was of one size, whether the vessel to be supplied therewith happened to be large or small. So much for the wisdom of those re- sponsible for such arrangements ! At length the anchor was extricated, but not till near the close of day, and too late to start that evening, and I terminated my sojourn in Upper Sindh with such a dinner as I had not seen during my stay there, for our commander was celebrated for the excellence of his cuisine, and Captain Howe, the Boat Superintendent, joined our little party, bringing with him a liberal supi^ly of champagne. Thus merrily passed my last evening at Sukkur, though we were not destined to start without another incident, for just as the Lawrence was moving off in the morning, a

2G4 AN INCIDENT.

Lascar, wlio happened to be on shore, jumped into the river to swim on board, forgetting that natation was an accomplishment that he did not possess. The result may easily be imagined, as, after floundering for some seconds, down lie went. Providentially our boat was out astern, and observing the Lascar's danger, two men jumped in, just in time to save the poor fellow, who had sunk twice before he could clutch the oar held out to him ; and when lugged into the boat he appeared for some moments senseless, and had to be assisted on board, where om' commander received him with a volley of strong ejaculations, both English and Hindustani, and two tremendous slaps in the face, followed by a kick behind — such being, I thought, rather a novel mode of reviving a half-drowned man, which I notice for the information of the Royal Humane Society. I cannot say that I approved the practice, but in other respects I liked the commander of the Laivrence. Ever at his post, no man could be more attentive to his duty, or more hospitable at his table, which was first- rate in all respects. The Laivrence^ a sister- vessel to the Frere^ had exactly the same ad- vantages and defects. I say had, for I am told

ARRIVAL AT KOTREE. 265

she has since been lost, but she was a very fast and comfortable steamer. We reached Kotree after a rapid run of 17 J hours from Sukkur, and there learned that the steamer had arrived at Kurrachee, and was to start for Bombay so immediately that it would be impossible to ar- rive in time for her, even by riding on camels across country, which I thought of doing, but was dissuaded from making the attempt, as it would have been a dangerous exposure in my very weak state. After all, however, I was obliged to leave the Latvrence, and go on in the little Conqueror^ just about to start, which is, I believe, about the most uncomfortable vessel on the river. She was, moreover, crowded to ex- cess, and crammed with freight and baggage, so much so, indeed, that there was barely room to lay one's bed at night, and thus being exposed to the heavy dew of Lower Sindh, I was laid pros- trate with severe fever. At sunset we anchored in the narrow passage, as it is called, and there found the Planet aground. In the night we dragged our anchor, and got so close to the shore that when we were starting in the morn- ing one of our paddle-wheels began to revolve on the bank, and was smashed in a moment.

266 ADIEU TO SINDH.

There we remained till the afternoon, my fever on the increase. So ill indeed was I, that on reaching the Traveller's Bungalow at Kurrachee, I was only just able to request Major Goldsmid, by note, to send a medical officer to see me ; and to Dr Nicholson's great skill and unremitting at- tention do I, under Providence, ascribe my re- covery, for I was six days in a very touch-and- go state, completely prostrate from fever, and with a large anthrax on my breast ; but, once again able to take exercise, I rapidly re- covered strength, and the thoughts of soon again beholding the loved ones in England contributed to my perfect recovery. On the 22nd September I quitted Kurrachee with a pleasant party returning from the Punjaub, and here I bid a long adieu to Sindh.

APPENDIX.

APPENDIX.

A.

EXTERNAL TEADE OF SCINDE.

{From tlie Sindhian, August 6, 1859.)

From a Mem. on the External Trade of Slnd, for the year 1858-59, endhig 30th April, 1859, we find that the total value of the Trade for the year mentioned is estimated at Rs. 2,58,48,784, on Imports Es. 1,54,06,058, and Exports 1,04,42,726 ; for the year imme- diately preceding, the total value of the Trade was Rs. 2,15,92,298; Imports 1,08,11,012, and Exports, 1,07,81,286, thus showing an increase in the value of the Trade for 1858-59, to the extent of Rs. 42,56,486 ; this increase is almost entirely owing to larger importations from

270 TEADE OF SIXDH.

England, direct, and from Bombay. The in- crease in the value of the Import Trade amounts to Rs. -45, 95, 046, or about 42 per cent, in excess of that of the previous year. The Imports are classified as follows :

For 1858-59.

Merchandise Rs. 1,43,86,874

Treasm-e 10,19,184

And for 1857-58.

Merchandise Rs. 91,47,909

Treasm-e 16,63,103

The increase, therefore, in Merchandise has been Rs. 52,38,965, while there has been a decrease in Treasui'e to the extent of Rs. 6,43,919. In the Imports in the Trade of Sind there has been a great increase from England, Bombay, Concan, Goa and Demaun, Guzerat, Malabar, Mekran, Moulmeiu, and Persian Gulf. The principal items of increased Imports from England are, Apparel, Books, and Sta- tionery, Malt Liquor, Military Appointments, Metals Manufactured, Oilman's Stores, Rail- way Materials, Spirits, Wines, Woollen Piece Goods, Cotton Piece Goods, Cabinet Ware, Sad- dler}^, and Glass Ware. From Bombay, Cotton

TRADE OF SrN'DH. 271

Piece Goods, Silk Piece Goods, Manufactured Metals, RaAV Silk, Spices, Wines and Spiiits, Raw Metals, Cotton Twist and Thi^ead, and Apparel. The increase in the Imports from tlie Concan, and from Goa and Demaun, consists simply of Timber. From Guzerat, Cotton, Seeds, and Timber. From Malabar, Timber. Meki-an, Oil Seeds, Ghee, and Salt Fish. From Moul- mein. Timber. The Persian Gulf, Dates. There has been a decrease in the value of the Import Trade from France. Cuteh. Katti- awar, and the ]\rauritius. Catch shows a de- crease chiefly in Grain. Tobacco, Snuif. and Treasure. Kattiawar, Cotton and Grain. The Maui'itius, solely in Treasm-e. The Export Trade of the present year shows a decrease in value to the extent of Rs. 3,38,560 ; in 1857 -dS, the Exports amounted to Rs. 1,07,81,286, while in 1858-59 they amount toRs. 1,04,42,726: viz. Merchandise in the previous year Rs. 1,07,36,134; Treasure Rs. 45,152: in 1858-59, Merchandise Rs. 1,04,04,070, Treasure Rs. 38,656. The chief places to which there has been any increase in Exports from Sind, are England, Calcutta, France, Goa and Demaun. Guzerat, Kattiawar. ]\Ialabar, Singapore, and

272 TRADE OF SINDH.

Ceylon, total increase to all of which is Es. 11,74,732. The decrease in the ExjDort Trade has been to Bombay, Concan, Cutch, Mauritius, Mekran, and Persian Gulf; the total decrease showing Es. 15,13,292. The items which show an increase in the Export Trade are chiefly Horses, Drugs, and Dyes, excepting Indigo and Munjeet, Grain of all sorts, excepting Wheat. Saltpetre, Oil Seeds, excepting Jinjeely, Sindh Salt, and Cashmere Shawls. During 1857-58 the value of the direct Exports from Sindh to England and France was Es. 5,20,368, Avhilst for the year 1858-59, the Exports have amount- ed to Es. 12,74,487, or 139 per cent, in excess of those of the previous year ; to England 129 per cent., and to France 10 per cent. Most of the direct shipments to England have been made by Bombay merchants through their agents here, and the same is to be said of the shipments to France. Consign- ments have also been forwarded by local traders on their own account. The increase in Exports to Calcutta is on account of Sindh Salt ; the amount of duty on that shipped by private individuals is estimated at Es. 48,711, and on that on account of the Bengal Government

TRADE OF SINDH. 273

Rs. I,60j850. The increase in Exports to Kat- tiawar has been in Fruit, Grain, Oil Seeds, Timber, and Treasure. The Trade to Malabar shows an increase in Afghan Horses. Accord- ing to the views entertained by Mr Dalzell, the Deputy Collector of Customs here, the decrease in the Export Trade to Bombay is at- tributable to the decline in the value of Wood, and other staples of Indian produce in the Home markets ; this depression has checked supplies, and the consequence has been that large quantities of Wool, Oil Seeds, &c., have been withheld both in Kurrachee and at Khetti, as well as in the interior. Considering that the Bombay market exercises an important influence on our own, we are inclined to think that Mr Dalzell's opinion is not far wide of the truth. The decrease in the trade to Bom- bay has been in Indigo, Munjeet, Grain, Ghee, Oil Seeds, Raw Silk, and Wool. To Cutch, in Fruit, Ghee, and Treasure. To the Mauri- tius, in Grain and Provisions. Mekran, Fruit, Grain, and Silk.

It will be seen that the External Trade of Sindh is now above two and a half mil- lions sterling, and that the direct exportations

VOL. 11. 18

274 TRADE OF SINDH.

to Europe are greatly increasing, and daily attracting the attention of the mercantile com- munity. As regards the tonnage employed in the external traffic of Sindh, the number of square-rigged vessels that entered this Port, including steamers, during 1857-58, was 87, aggregating 49,930 tons; the departures in the same year were 75, tons 41,450. In 1858-59 the arrivals were 96 vessels, aggre- gating 52,926 tons ; the departures 107, tons 56,554:. Vessels drawing 19 feet 6 inches, have, in the past year, entered the Harbour in perfect safety, and as many as twenty-five vessels, ranging from 500 to 1000 tons each, have been inside at one and the same time, all swinging to their anchors, and not a single accident has happened in either entering or leaving the port.

From the Commissioner in Sindli to the Right Honourable Lord Viscount Falkland, Governor and President in Council, Bombay.

* From Andrew's Siudli Railway.

SINDH RAILWAY ESTIMATES. 275

EXTEACTS.

Dated \Qth Novemher, 1853.

My Lord,

I have now the honour to transmit a letter from Major Tm^ner, Superintendmg Engineer, forwarding the reports, in which Lieutenant Chapman details the results of the season's work, and the plans with which lie illustrates them.

Lieutenant Chapman has taken no credit for the certain increase of trade.

It will in all probability, by the unaided result of causes now in operation, be 60 or 80 per cent, greater than at present before the line can be possibly opened, however speedily it may be commenced ; and the making, and still more the opening, of the line will of course give it a vast impetus.

Nor has Lieutenant Chapman taken credit for anything which was not before him offici- ally, c. g. the vast amount of commissariat and other government stores now in progress to the Panjaub, or expected, such as 10,000 barrels of porter this year, 3000 tons of iron expected next season for a bridge at Attock — facts

18 •

276 SINDH RAILWAY ESTIMATES.

which might have materially swelled his pro- spective returns.

He might also have fairly taken credit for the saving his projects, if fairly carried out, will effect in such heavy items of expense, as wear and tear of tents and camp equipage, de- terioration of stores by delay and exposure, and the saving in the local expenses of the com- missariat, which will be possible when a vessel can discharge direct into a railway truck, which will a few hom's afterwards deliver its contents on the river-bank at Kotree, a point to reach which at present occupies generally a month at least, and often much more.

I therefore consider Lieutenant Chapman's estimates quite on the safe side ; and I believe he might, without rashness, have greatly en- hanced the amount of his prospective returns.

As regards the extraordinar}^ facilities which the line presents for either canal or railway, I may be allowed to add my testimony as an unprofessional traveller to the more com- petent testimony of both engineer officers. I have certainly never seen a country with superior facilities for the easy and cheap exe- cution of such works.

SINDH RAILWAY. 277

Of tlie two projects I prefer the railway, as being the more' perfect means of attaining the desired object, as regards position of the river, terminus, speed, and cheapness ; the less liable to mishaps from unforeseen ac- cidents and caprices of the river ; the more comprehensive as regards the classes of traffic it will accommodate ; but more especially because there is no rival or alternative means of communication which can compete with It : whereas the success of a canal would be the most certain means of insuring the sjoeedy rivalry of a railway.

Moreover, a railway would meet with ready support from capitalists at a distance, who would be less likely to view a canal as a favourable Investment.

Such capitalists are, I believe, prepared to find the means of carrying out a railway over ■ the line In question, as soon as they hear that tlie scheme is approved of, and sup- ported by Government, as sound in Itself, and that the Government of India is willing to extend to the undertaking the usual guaran- tee of interest.

Mr Hardy Wills, a Civil Engineer now

278 SINDH RAILWAY.

employed in the Province, was so struck by the facilities for constructing a railway over the line in question when he traversed it on duty last year, that he communicated his observa- tions to friends at home, and supported them by sections of most of the water-courses, which Major Turner procured for him, and by Custom House and traffic returns. The result has been that a company is now, as I learn from him, in course of formation in England, with a view to undertake the line if supported by Government in the manner above alluded to.

The very satisfactory mode in which the duty intrusted to Lieutenant Chapman has been performed is, I believe, in no small de- gree owing to the effective support and as- sistance he has in every case met with, and the valuable advice he has received from Major Turner, the Superintending Engineer.

I have the honour to be, &c.,

(Signed) H. B. E. Frere,

Commissioner.

SINDH RAILWAY. 279

C. *

Fkom the Superintending Engineer to tlie Commissioner in Sindli.

EXTEACTS. Sir,

As the commerce and the traffic of the country have increased, so also have the risk and inconvenience of the existing means of communication become more apparent ; and it has now become absolutely necessary to im- prove those means, in order to meet the urgent demands of Government and of the public, for the conveyance of stores and merchandise to the countries through which the Indus and the other rivers which fall into it flow, as well as to enable the produce of those countries to be brought to a market.

During the last two years the necessity for such means have become even more pressing : unusually heavy falls of rain and high inun- dations have closed the direct land route to the river for many months in each year, while the constant changes inseparable from all Delta navigation threaten at no distant

* From Audi'ew's Sindh Railway.

280 SINDH RAILWAY.

period to cut off the communication from Kurrachee to the river through the tidal creeks altogether; besides which, the opening of the harbour to English merchant shipping arising from improved knowledge of its capa- bilities has created a disposition to carry on trade direct with England, instead of through the port of Bombay.

Moreover, Government are in a variety of other ways directly interested in improving the means of communication : tlie existing state of matters cripples the enterprise of tlie culti- vators, and in many places limits the extent of cultivation to the local demand. You will re- member a fact brought forward in my rej^ort, on the roads in Sindh, dated the 30th March, 1852, that at Narree I found stacks of Government grain of three years'' standing^ ivhich, though re- peatedly submitted to jmUic auction^ nohody tvoidd huy in consequence of the cost of conveying it to a marlcet. The grain tvas eventually destroyed hy the inundation of 1851. The effects of improved communication on cultivation were very clearly explained in a late American journal. Wheat, valued in that country at 49 dollars 50 c. at the nearest market, if cariied 330 miles by

SINDH RAILWAY. 281

ordinary highway, cost in conveyance its full prime cost, and its value was therefore doubled ; while if conveyed by railway the same distance, it would have cost in carriage no more than five dollars. In cheaper kinds of grain, the cost price, 24 dollars 75 c, would be expended in carriage, if conveyed only 160 miles by highway, whereas it would have cost 2 dol- lars 40 c. only to have conveyed it the same distance by railway. In Sindh, the proportion the cost of conveyance bears to the price of grain on the spot where it is grown is much greater ; and it could be easily proved that in parts of the country, at even short distances from markets, where the demand is not limited by local consumption, the cost of carriage to that market is so great that it is unprofitable to cultivate, and that the cultivation is therefore checked, and limited to the consumption of the immediate localities.

Having carefully examined the country through which it is proposed the railway shall pass, I can assure you that it is admii-ably adapted for such a work ; it consists of a number of level or nearly level plains, with a generally bard and smooth surface. Abundant stone will be

282 SINDH RAILWAY.

found along it for ballasting, as well as for stone blocks, should they (as I believe will be the case) be found preferable to wooden sleepers. The measured distance of the present road is lOOJ miles, so that in taking 110 miles, I con- clude, Lieutenant Chapman provides for ex- tending it to Keeamaree and the town, but even then 110 miles is a very ample allowance.

I apj^rove of Lieutenant Chapman's proposal to extend the line of railway to Kotree : Hy- derabad and Kurrachee are two of the three principal towns of Sindh, and should be united, and, for the reasons given in the first to third paragraph of his report, I do not think any communication from Kurrachee to tlie river by railway short of Kotree would pay.

The two objections raised to Kotree as a terminus, I do not consider of much moment: the Bahran has yet to be examined, and I believe that at an inconsiderable distance to the west of the direct line, a rocky bed for the foundations of the bridge will be discovered, and there is no doubt that if the bank of the river above Kotree were faced with dry rubble it would be quite safe. The cost of the measure is at present the difficulty : when a railway has been

SINDH EAILWAY. 283

laid down from the hills, that difficulty will be removed.

Great credit is due to Lieutenant Chapman for the labour and forethought with which, in so short a time, he has succeeded in getting together so much valuable information, and for the business-like manner in which he has col- lated and arranged it. In neitlier of his pro- jects (railway or canal) has he made the most of the facts he had adduced : not only has he discarded all information not strictly official, but he has used the official returns with the greatest caution ; and with the knowledge that it has been a very common practice in England, when framing traffic returns, to double all the existing traffic, and that result has gen- erally shown that the projectors have been by no means too sanguine, I am certain a much larger return might very fairly have been promised. For instance, the commerce of Sindh has been found, without the stimulus of improved means of communication, steadily to have increased at the rate of 20 per cent, per annum : the removal of all transit duties will certainly tend to increase the commerce still more rapidly ; yet, notwithstanding the Deputy Collector

284 SINDH RAILWAY.

asserts that by the time the railway could be opened (say four years hence) the trade will be doubled, Lieutenant Chapman has not taken any credit for even the ordinary per centage of increase due to the years the railway must be in j^rogress. So again with resjDect to tax- ing the boats : he proposes not more than the actual saving of food to the crews, whereas decrease of wear and tear, the absence of risk, saving of time, and consequent preservation of perishable goods, are all advantages which would willingly be paid for.

In the single item of 10,000 casks of ale and porter, now being sent to the Punjaub, I am confident a large profit could be shov/n, either in the canal or railway project ; while, as the length of voyage would be decreased some twenty-four days, there would be a much better chance of its arrival at its destination in good order. In the commissariat too the saving of expense would be immense, were there direct communication from the harbour to Kotree. I have the honour to be, &c.

(Signed) H. B. Turner, Major, Superintending Engineer, Sindh. Kurrachee, 15th JVbveviher, 1853.

CHAPMAN S REPORT. 285

D.

RAILROAD REPORT.

From Lieutenant W. Chapman,* Bombay- Engineer, on special duty in Sindli, to the Superintending Engineer.

EXTEACTS.

A cursory inspection of the map of Sindh, and a slight knowledge of the commercial routes of the province, are requisite to deter- mine on the valley of the Indus as the direction that any contemplated railroad must of necessity take ; and since the unequivocal success which attended the construction of the first line of railroad in England is uni- versally attributed to a complete communica- tion having been at once established between two important points, while the wisdom of the principle laid down has been so fully borne out, as well by the failures as successes of subsequent undertakings, as to have become

* This higlily-taleuted aud valuable young officer was unfortu- nately drowned in the Indus near Sehwan, with a Sergeant of Engineers and several men, by the upsetting of a boat which struck against a sunken tree on the 21st December, 1853.

286 chapman's eeport.

almost an axiom in railway considerations, no further argument appears necessary to demon- strate the advisability of at once connecting the two most considerable places in the general line of communication desired.

In ascending the valley of the Indus, the first point of political and commercial im- portance presents itself on the right bank of the river at Kotree ; and as a railroad with its terminus here would fully satisfy the requirements of a direct communication with the Indus, which forms the subject of this report, it appears advisable that Kotree, the port of Hyderabad, should be at once con- nected with KmTachee, the harbour of Sindh.

The latter derives its consequence from be- ing the head-quarters of the Civil Govern- ment and military establishment of the pro- vince, in being a rising seaport dependent only upon the improvement of its harbour for European Commercial importance ; while the former, in addition to its immediate proximity to the large station of Hyderabad, and being itself the depot of the Indus Flotilla, pre- sents also, in conjunction with Hyderabad, a centre, to which all the great lines of traffic

chapman's repoet. 287

from Upper and Lower Sindh, Southern Rujali- pootana, and Cutcli, severally converge ; whilst its position on the Indus adds to these the additional advantages of intercepting the down- river traffic before the navigation becomes difficult and attended with risk.

As the only other important preliminary consideration necessary to be noticed, i. e. that of capability of extension along the valley of the InduSj is answered by the position of Kotree, little doubt appears to exist as to the advisability of selecting Kotree (or, as will be hereafter explained, a spot near it), and Kurrachee, as the termini of the first railway to be constructed in Sindh, provided it can be shown that no financial objections exist.

From the position of Kurrachee with respect to the Indus, the traffic naturally classifies itself vmder two divisions : —

1st. The traffic by river.

2nd. The traffic by land.

Each of these, again, resolves itself into two beads : —

1st. The traffic carried on by native river craft.

2nd. That conveyed by the steamers of the Indus Flotilla.

288 chapman's eepoet.

And again: —

1st. The traffic by the main road tlii'ough Tatta and Jerruck to Kotree.

2nd. That existing on several direct routes through the hills, varying in extent, as the supplies of water and forage are scarce or abundant.

Under these heads, the goods traffic must first be considered.

To enable a judgment to be formed of the amount under the first head, a return of the exports and imjDorts of the different ports of the Indus furnished by the Collector of Customs is available, from which it will be seen that the river traffic by native craft is estimated at 30,406 tons.

A slight check upon this amount is derivable from a register, kept by the authorities of the Indus flotilla, of the number of boats passing different stations of the river, from which an approximation to the maundage of goods pass- ing Tatta (which only, for reasons given in the Canal report, can be safely taken), is calculated at 15,46,600 maunds. Reducing this by one third, as an allowance for vessels being imj^er-

'V-

chapman's repoet. 289

fectly filled, it gives a tonnage of 55,236 tons, which is no doubt exaggerated, but so far valu- able as to show that the first estimate, which must be taken as representing the river traffic, is probably on the safe side.

The quantities of goods and merchandise, both Government and piivate, conveyed by the Indus flotilla, are shown in the returns fur- nished by Captain Ethersey. The first item, Government stores, amounted from the 1st February 1848 to 30th April 1853, or during the course of 12 months, to 10,936 tons. The proportion of this for one year is 2017 tons. Private merchandise, again, conveyed from the 1st May 1851 to the 30th April 1853, was 23,622 maunds. The half of this for one year amounts to 422 tons. The tonnage under this head may consequently be set down at 2539 tons per annum.

The overland routes, divided into, 1st, the traffic by the main road by Tatta and Jerruck ; 2nd, by the various hill routes.

In considering this branch of the traffic, the returns furnished by the police authorities con- stitute the only official documents available : though imperfect for the purpose, still some

VOL. II. 19

290 chapman's report.

approximation may be deduced from them upon which an estimate of the probable amount of traffic may be based.

These returns are taken at fom' places on the high road between Kurrachee and Hyder- abad : two of these, that is, those at Gharra and Tatta, the central stations, cannot clearly be taken as representing the through traffic, on account of the registers at Jemedar Jce LancU and Jerruck, the outer stations, showing a great decrease in almost every item. The great difference observable may be accounted for, in the instance of Tatta, by its being a large city, and consequently subject to great local move- ment ; and in the case of Gharra, by a much frequented cross communication from the Sakra Pergunna passing through it, as well as from its neighbourhood being a favomite grazing ground for camels, of which animals a large number is shown in its register.

To assume the returns of Jemedar Jce Landi^ would be to suppose that everything passing through that place continued on to Kotree, which would manifestly lead to error.

The mean between the returns of Jemedar ke Landi and Jerruck must therefore be taken to

chapman's report. 291

represent the throiigh-iTSi^o, between Kurrachee and Kotree, on this road.

As the returns do not distinguish between laden and unladen, the usual proportion of two- thirds to one-third will be taken for all descrip- tions of conveyance. The abstract statement attached to the police returns shows the calcu- lations agreeably to the above considerations, and the amount, 1571 tons, must be supposed to represent the overland traffic by this route.

But a correction is still required for the va- rious routes mentioned under the second head of this division, for which no register of any description exists.

This is supplied by a return furnished me by the Captain of Police, from inquiries made of all the principal merchants of the town, and by written statements received from those of camp, including, in all instances, the entire trade of their firms by the land route. From an abstract of these statements, in which the necessary de- ductions are made in certain cases, it will be seen that 3792 tons are deduced.

In order to apply this correction, it will be necessary to take the mean of the two estimates, or 2681 tons, as the total amount of traffic to be

19 *

292 chapman's report.

calculated upon the land route from Kurracliee through to Kotree.

The entire present traffic in goods and mer- chandise which would be carried by a railroad would therefore be as follows : —

r Native Craft 30,406 tons.

^ ^^^^( Indus Flotilla .... 2,539 „ By the Land Routes 2,681 ,,

Total 35,626 tons.

As a check upon this total, again, the Col- lector of Customs, in a return furnished by him of the exports and imports by the sea face [vide page 95*] after making deductions, — 1st, for the consumption at Kurrachee; 2nd, for the imports and exports across the western frontier; and, 3rd, for the partial lading of vessels, — estimates the probable amount of ex- ports and imports of the land face, both by the direct routes and by the river, at 57,050 tons. Considering, then, the sources from which the totals of the above summary have been derived, and the authority which supports the last esti- mated amount, it appears to me that 40,000

* Appendix to Lieuteuaut Chapmau's Reportj printed for Bom- bay Goveruuieut.

chapman's repokt. 293

tons may be very safely assumed as the small- est amount of goods which will probably be carried over its entire length each year by a railroad.

N.B. All stores forwarded by the Commissa- riat and Ordnance Departments are trans- mitted through the agency of the Indus flotilla, and are consequently included in the returns furnished by the Superintend- ent.

Before proceeding to the consideration of the amount of passenger-traffic that may be ex- pected upon a railway, I would quote an extract from a letter from Captain Crawford, the Super- intending Engineer Railway Department, Bom- bay, on this head, which, though of the greatest importance at home, has not always been al- lowed a place in railway calculations in India, — an omission arising from a general conviction that natives would be slow to take advantage of a new means of locomotion supposed to be incompatible with their present habits, and, in fact, much beyond their appreciation.

Captain Crawford, in speaking of the experi- mental line at Bombay, more than tln-ec months

294 chapman's report.

after its opening, when the novelty must, to a certain degree, have worn off, says : ''It an- swers well, and conveys a regular traffic, even during the monsoon, of some 5000 passengers a-week, and considerably more than pays its own expenses. All classes use it, men, women, and children ; and the poorest avail themselves of it in travelling on business, which is a good sign for the further extension."

This testimony, supported by the combined reports of the different Presidency journals, appears a sufficient authority for believing that 2 assenger-traffic in India, provided the fares are low, will form a very important item in railway returns ; and that taking into account the marvellous increase of movement which always followed the introduction of railroads, it fully warrants the assumption that at least one- third of the number of passengers at present found on any line of road affected, are likely to avail themselves of the new means of trans- port.

Suppose this to be admitted, the following passengers may be expected on the line : —

chapman's report. 295

Per Annum.

1st ClasSj say 600

2dcI Class, say 1,200

3rd Class, the mean of tlie Police return of Jemedar- ke-Landi and Kotree, tak- ing one-third 11,342

Troops, the average of Five Years (vide Deputy Assist- ant Quarter-Master Gener- al's Return, page 107) .. 9,300

Total Third Class 20,642

4th Class, servants and camp-fol- r

lowers for above, 2 to each 18,600

In the above calculations no credit is taken for the great increase of the trade of the port, which is stated by the Collector of Customs (vide his letter, page 99) to have steadily augmented ''for several years past at the rate of 20 per cent, per annum," and which bids fair to show a greater proportional increase for the future, from the desire evinced by the com- missariat authorities to take advantage of the Indus route, in providing European necessaries to the troops in the Upper Provinces of the Punjaub.

296 chapman's report.

As an experiment, 10,000 casks of ale and porter, during the present year alone, have been forwarded from England direct to Kur- rachee, for transmission by the Indus. Should this not answer as an economical arrangement, from the serious drawbacks existing in the na- vigation of the tidal channels and lower part of the river, a railroad, removing all these obstacles, could not fail to have the effect of turning the scale in favour of the route, and a considerable traffic would be opened out in the conveyance of Government stores alone, to the no small benefit of Government itself.

It appears unnecessary to dwell upon the advantages, political, commercial, and social, which have invariably followed the introduction of railroads in all parts of the world, and which, I cannot but think, are to be equally claimed for India, where British enterprise would still lead the way ; nor need arguments be adduced to prove that India is in a position, from the immense capability which she possesses in her wide-spreading fertile plains for the growth of surplus produce, to take a prominent position among countries exporting raw materials and grain, provided only the means of transporting

chapman's keport. 297

these staple sources of wealth to her numerous ports were adequately provided.

Scinde in itself is a crying proof of this prevailing want. Here, on account of the scarcity of a coined medium, a great portion of the Government revenue is annually paid in kind ; and I have heard, upon good au- thority, that it is not uncommon, in seasons more than usually abundant, to see masses of grain, which under other circumstances might possibly have been the means of mitigating in a distant part the horrors of famine, lying rotting on the ground. This necessity is further exemplified, in the case of the province, by the great disproportion which exists in the price of grain in the producing and con- suming districts, as seen in the weekly tariffs (vide page 108), evincing an absence of the necessary means for regulating market prices, and rendering apparent the existence of a mo- nopoly in the supply of the necessaries of life, which cannot but act prejudicially in any place or state of society.

A conviction of the general importance of Scinde, as a commercial acquisition, has so grown upon me during the course of the in-

298 chapman's eeport.

quiries on which I have been engaged, that I cannot close this report, especially since the examination shows that no financial objection exists to either project (canal or railway), with- out respectfully urging, through you, upon Government the advisability of at once secur- ing to the province and Upper India the mani- fold benefits which the adoption of either scheme, preferably, doubtless, the latter (the railway), is unquestionably calculated to be- stow ; and I would conclude by trusting, that the statistical information collated and em- bodied in the documents now submitted will in some measure excuse the length to which this report has necessarily been extended.

I have the honour to be, &C.5

(Signed) W. Chapman, Lieutenant, Engineers, On Special Duty, Scinde. Kurrachee,

November 1st, 1853.

DR stock's EEPORT.

299

E.*

LIST OE TIMBEE TEEES, EETJIT TEEES, AND BUSHES IN SINDH.

1 Mulberry

2 Neem

3 Ber

4 Poplar or Bahn

5 Kahow or Mountain Olive . . .

6 Banian Tree ...

7 Peepul

8 Biting Peloo

9 Leafless Caper Bush or Kirrur

10 False Blackwood, Talee

11 Tamarind

Morus Alba. Azadirachta Indiea. Ziziphus Vulgaris. Populus Eupbeatica. Olea Cuspidata. Eicus Indiea. Ficus Eelegiosa. Salvadora Peesica. Capparis Assbylla. Dalbergia Sissoo. Tamarindus Indiea.

12 Sobeeia or Iron-wood of tbe Hills.Tecoma Undulata.

13 Horse Eadisb Tree ...

14 Mango

15 Mountain Neem

16 Sweet Peloo

17 Madras Blackwood or Surreeb

18 Amultas

19 Tesooree

20 Sepistan Gedooree ...

21 Date Palm

22 Tree Tamarisk

23 Jamoo

Hypeoantbera Moringa Mangifera Indiea. Melia Buckayen. Salvadora Oleoides. Albryzia Lebuce. Cassia Fistula. Cordia Myaa. Cordia Satifolia. Pbceirix Ductylifera. Tamarix Articulata. Jambosa Vulgaris.

* From Dr Stock's Kcport.

300

DR STOCK S REPORT.

24 Bubur

25 Thorn Tree, Kando ...

26 Fig

27 Tamarisk Bush

28 Parkinsoniana Aculeata

29 Acacia FarBesianee ...

30 Phylanthus

31 Siar

32 Babool

Acacia Arabica. Proposis Spugeia. Ficus Carica. Tamarisk Dixca.

Multifloures or Kamho. Cordia Subossposita.

THE END.

JOHN CHILDS AND SON, PRINTEKS.

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